Their King County Past
by LeaDenise
Summary: Daryl and Shane don't necessarily like each other but they have to tolerate each other because of Shane's sister Brooke. Daryl and Brooke have been best friends since they were teenagers and trust each other. A virus had wiped out the population and Daryl doesn't know where she is. Everything he does reminds him of her. Rated T for some language, abuse, and romantic situations.
1. Chapter 1: The First Conversation

Chapter 1: The First Conversation

The Dixon brothers drove into the quarry with their new group. The city had just been bombed and they knew anyone alive in the city couldn't have survived. Merle got off his bike and Daryl got out of the truck. He only had one thing on his mind. He walked over to Shane who was unloading the RV. Daryl had known Shane for a long time. Long before the apocalypse and they didn't necessarily like each other but they could tolerate each other. They had to for Shane's sister Brooke.

"Shane was she still there in Atlanta? Did she go to the beach house?"

"Daryl I don't know. She was at the hospital there at a medical convention when it all broke out. The only thing she told me was to go to the beach house." Shane ran his hand through his hair, trying to hold back tears. "If we had gotten there sooner! I don't know where she is! I don't know if she's alive! I promised I would protect her!" Daryl could feel his eyes stinging. He helped him unload the rest of it and went to find Merle who had disappeared into the woods.

"So Darylina, did you figure out where the little bitch is?" Merle asked smoking a cigarette. Daryl rolled his eyes and shot a squirrel.

"We think she was in the city." He answered softly. "If she was I don't think she would've made it."

"Well little brother I think I'm actually gonna miss her. I'm gonna miss her trying to shut me up." Merle smiled teasingly. Daryl knew he actually meant it though. Brooke had helped Merle out many times even though she didn't like him. Even when he would call her sugar-tits she was level with him. Brooke Walsh was one of the few people who knew how to fight Merle and get on his good side. Dinner was called and Daryl didn't eat their first night in the quarry.

"Mom?" Carl asked.

"Yes honey." Lori replied. She was still upset from the news about Rick. Was she sad that Brooke maybe gone? Yes but it wasn't much of a loss for her. She never really liked Brooke.

"Is Aunt Brooke okay?" he asked. Shane looked up from his plate and looked at Lori who didn't know how to answer. He ruffled his hair.

"I'm sure she is kiddo." Shane answered with a warm, but fake, smile. "She's tough remember?"

"Yeah I remember." Carl said and continued eating. Lori signaled a thank you and continued herself. "You gonna eat Daryl?"

"Ain't that hungry." He grumbled. Merle laughed at him.

"Don't need to be watching your figure for that girl anymore." He howled. Shane took Carl and Lori to their tent since Carl had started to weep. Daryl stormed off to his tent that he shared with his dog of a brother. "Oh come on little brother! I was jus havin' a little fun!"

"Jus go to sleep Merle." He growled. "You need to watch what you say now because that little kid has already lost his dad. He needs to have some hope left."

"You have a thing for little boys now?" Merle asked.

"Shut up Merle!" he yelled. His brother snickered.

"Whatever! I'm going into the woods."

"Whatever." Daryl grumbled. He just laid on his cot and thought about Brooke. She was his best friend in the entire world. He could always go to her when he needed a person and she could do the same. He remembered the first time he saw her. It was eleven years ago in King County.

_Daryl was 17, just about to turn eighteen and it was October. He sat in Gina's Café with his mother after a long day at school. They walked in and each ordered the legendary red velvet cake and peppermint tea that the Café was known for. He saw three ladies. An Indian girl with jet black hair and was the shortest of the three. A blonde haired girl with a nose piercing that looked to be about sixteen. And then he saw her. A girl with long, dark brown hair, tan skin, and dark blue eyes. She was wearing a baby blue sun dress with little pink ribbons on the straps. A Beach Boys song was playing on the radio and they were all twirling and singing while getting their order ready. The brunette with the blue dress carried the platter .She looked to be about 15._

"_Hi! So that's two slices of red velvet and two mugs of peppermint tea is that correct?" she asked. Her voice was smooth and sweet._

"_Yes it is!" his mother replied. She still had a bruise on her arm from his father and a cut on her cheek that began to bleed._

"_Oh goodness! Let me get a bandage!" the girl said and pranced behind the counter. She came back. "What happened?"_

"_Oh nothing hun. Thank you." Daryl kept quiet and watched as the girl ripped open the bandage. He lifted his hand and took the bandage._

"_I can do that." He said bluntly. She nodded, brushed her hair back behind her ear and greeted the next two men that came into the door._

"_Hey Shane! Hey Rick! What can I get ya?" she greeted. She was picked up off her feet by the tall one with dark, curly hair. She soon hugged the other one. She gave them each a kiss on the cheek. Her lips were the perfect shade of pink without any lipstick._

"_Hey Brooke!" the dark haired one greeted. "The usual. Where's mom?" So her name was Brooke._

_ "She's in the back. Mom!" she called. An auburn haired woman stepped out from the back room. She was very pretty with a brilliant smile and this Brooke girl looked just like her. The woman greeted her son and his friend and got them their usual. Daryl had finished his meal and so had his mother. The Indian girl brought their check. His mother looked into her wallet and found it empty and Daryl had the same fate._

_ "Merle." He cursed. He looked to see the Brooke girl looking at them. She quickly looked away and went to her mother. Her mother smiled and nodded her head. She smacked her shoulder as the girl ran to the cash register. She took a twenty from her own purse and put it in the cash register. She took out some dollars and change and walked over to their table. She placed the change from the twenty on the table._

"_This one's on us." She said with a wink._

"_No that's really-" His mother began._

"_I insist." Brooke simply said and walked away. They left the café but Daryl just didn't feel right about what happened. He'd just let a lady pay for his meal._

"_She was nice." His mother said. "She was cute too!" Daryl's face went red and his mother nudged him with her elbow. Later that night at six o'clock he went back to the café to pay back his debt. He didn't have any money but he would figure out something. The café was just about to close and he walked in._

"_Mom, I'll close up. I can walk home." Brooke said._

"_Alright honey just be safe." Her mother said. "Well hello!" she said to Daryl."I'm about to leave but Brooke can help you. Goodnight!" Daryl just nodded and she left. He could tell that Brooke remembered him._

"_Hello again!" she greeted."Can I help you?"_

"_Um, I wanted to thank you for earlier today." He stammered. She was really cute._

"_No problem!"_

"_I just wanted to pay you back." He explained._

"_Oh that's not necessary." She said as she began to clean up the plates. He grabbed some too and began to walk behind the counter. "Wait what are you doing?"_

"_Paying you back."_

"_No I don't think so! It's really no big deal!" She said. He ignored her and turned on the faucet if the sink. She quickly turned it off, took the plates from him, and made sure he couldn't reach the sink by standing in front of him, her face just a few inches from his._

"_I don't have money to pay you back and I've seen the people who can't pay do the dishes in the movies so just let me help you do the damn dishes!" Daryl said frustrated. Brooke's eyes widened._

"_Alright, alright. You can help." She said defeated. He washed the dishes while she dried them off. "So what's your name?" He didn't answer. "You talked a whole damn lot before so why not now?" He handed her a teacup. "My name's Brooke Walsh."_

"_Man you're a chatty one." He said._

"_And you're a cranky one." She replied. He smirked and stopped washing the dishes. He held out his hand._

"_Daryl Dixon."_

"_Nice to meet you Daryl!" she shook his hand with a broad, gleaming smile. "So how old are you?"_

"_I'm seventeen. I'll be eighteen next month." He replied. "How old are you?"_

"_Happy early birthday! I just turned fifteen in September." She answered. So he was right. He gave himself an imaginary pat on the back."I graduate next year."_

"_I graduate this year. He stopped and looked at her. "But you'll only be sixteen."_

"_I skipped two grades." She said. Which means she was smart. Probably smarter than him._

"_Why do you work here?"_

"_My mother is Gina herself." She said."Next question." She smiled. He smiled back._

"_Okay who were those other two girls that you were dancing with today?"_

"_The Indian one is Amber Kapoor, she's my age and she graduates next year as well. The blonde one is Becky Tate. She's two years older than me. We're all in the same science class and we're the closest thing we have to sisters." She explained. "And the guys that hugged me was my brother Shane and his best friend Rick. They both plan on going to the police academy." That means that her family would not like his, especially Merle. "What about you? Any siblings?"_

"_One but he's not that special."_

"_Not a strong relationship huh?" she asked. He grunted in response as he remembered the beating he got earlier today from him. "Okay let me think."_

"_What do you want to do when you graduate?" Daryl asked._

"_I want to be a doctor for cancer patients. Maybe do a little research on the side. What about you?"_

"_I don't know yet." He knew that made him look stupid. In fact he already did. He was covered in dirt, his hair wasn't brushed, and his clothes were just pieces of crap._

"_My friends don't know what they want to do yet either. They say they'll figure that out once they're in college. Hopefully we all get accepted into Georgia." She hoped. There was a silence but it was a comfortable silence. "So tell me Dixon." He laughed at her sentence. "Why did me paying for your meal bother you so much that your helping me clean?"_

"_I ain't never let a lady pay for my things before." He admitted. _

"_So I'm a lady?" she asked. He looked up and down her body._

"_I'd certainly hope so." He said. "Or else I would be confused." She laughed at this and playfully slapped his arm. Man did she have a great laugh. "Sorry that's just the way my momma taught me."_

"_No! I like that. There are not many men like that anymore. It's refreshing!" she said. Daryl had a smug look on his face. So he wasn't like the other guys. He guessed that was good. "My brother barely does that with whatever college whore he's dating." She admitted and Daryl almost spit out the water he was drinking._

"_Was not expecting that!" he howled. She laughed and took a sip of her water. They talked for however long it was until she looked at the clock. _

"_Oh my God!" she exclaimed. Its 9 already! I'm sorry Daryl but I have to close up shop!"_

"_Aw, you kickin' me out Brooke?" he teased. She turned off the lights, let Daryl out and locked the door. She started walking. "You walkin' all the way to your house?" _

"_It's only fifteen minutes away." She said like it was no big deal._

"_Come on do you need a ride?" he asked but took it back. "Sorry that seems kinda creepy." He walked in the opposite direction._

"_Wait! I'll take that ride!" she yelled behind him. He secretly smiled and opened the car door for her._

"_Your chariot awaits." He said. She giggled and climbed into the car. She gave him the directions and led him to a three story, white house. "Wait!" he said. He went around and opened her door. "Bye Brooke." He said._

"_Bye Daryl." She smiled. "Oh and if you ever want to pay me back don't hesitate to come by."_

"_I'll keep that in mind." He said._

Daryl snapped out of his day dream. He sighed and pulled the covers closer to his neck. He would always remember that day. It was one of those days that were impossible to forget. Who knew that one night was just the start of something he'd never had before. Someone to care about and to have someone care about him.


	2. Chapter 2: Merle

Chapter 2: Merle

It had been only two days since they first arrived at the quarry. They were all just getting to know each other but because of Merle the people left Daryl alone most of the time. Daryl didn't care. The less distractions the better. He had always been one to distance himself but once he grew close to someone he didn't want to let go. That's what happened to him and Brooke. It didn't take them long to become friends and for her friends to become his. He trusted Brooke with everything he had even though they had their ups and downs. He thought Merle would be the major down in their relationship but Brooke was stronger than he thought. While he was preparing some squirrel for the group when he overheard the group talking

"What about the Dixon brothers?" Lori asked. "Doesn't Merle seem kinda dangerous to the group?"

"The worst he's done to me is calling me sugar-tits," Andrea said. " but I'm kinda afraid too Lori."

"Of both of them?" Shane asked. Carl was shortly behind him.

"Well if Daryl was raised with Merle wouldn't he be just like him or do the same _stuff_ that Merle does?" Jacqui asked.

"Also if Daryl can't even handle Merle then who can?" Jim asked.

"Guys I've known only one person who could whip Merle into shape for a short amount of time." Shane admitted sadly. "I've known Daryl for a long time and he's not like his brother. He may be tough but he's nothing like Merle. He ain't even half as bad and trust me Jacqui, Daryl doesn't do any of that _stuff_." Daryl could hardly believe that Shane was defending him but he was right and he thanked Shane in his head. The group could quickly tell that Shane was upset for many reasons and Carl signaled that Daryl was behind them so they switched to some other story that Daryl didn't give a shit about. He thought about the story Merle told him of before he walked into the café the first time Merle met Brooke.

_It had been two months since Daryl and Brooke met. Brooke didn't really know much about Daryl's personal life but she always noticed the bruises and cuts he came into the café with. She never asked him about it though. If he started bleeding, or if his mother did, she would just clean it up and put a bandage over it. If he wanted to tell her about it he would in due time. Brooke was working on a Monday with the girls the week of Christmas. It wasn't a busy day but most of their regulars had come in. Everyone in town was out of town or keeping their company comfortable. _

_ "Brooke that man in the corner wants more coffee." Amber said. She clearly had an Indian accent but spoke English better than all of the hicks in the town._

_ "That man has had five cups of coffee!" she said "How much coffee can one person drink?" Becky came behind the counter with the pot of their specialty coffee. They took care of the shop today because Brooke's mother was feeling weak once again._

_ "You should be the one to talk honey!" Becky joked handing her the pot. "You drink more than anyone I know." Brooke laughed and walked over the bald man in the corner. He was maybe about six to eight years older than Brooke._

_ "What's yo name sweetheart?" he asked in a very country accent. Brooke ignored him and served him more coffee. She walked away. "Milk!" he called out after her. Amber grabbed the milk and walked over the table in the corner._

_ "Why does he need milk? He's already making it Irish and he smells Irish too." Brooke whispered to her as they walked past each other. Amber giggled and sat the milk on the table._

_ "Sorry about that." She said. "We're just a little tired." She had always tried to give people a chance even if they did hit on teenage girls._

_ "What's your name curry?" he asked. Amber looked back at the two girls with a disturbed face. Becky rolled her eyes, having enough of this guy._

_ "I'm Becky, she's Amber, and she's Brooke. Now drink your coffee." She said. Brooke hid her smirk and secretly high fived Becky._

_ "How old are you fine pieces of women?"_

_ "Younger than you that's for sure." Amber replied. Becky gasped in laughter but hid it back quickly. According to Mrs. Gina "A customer's a customer." But Brooke was pretty sure her mother would've kicked this pervert out of the store by now. One, for putting some cheap liquor into his coffee and two, for hitting on her girls._

_ "Now don't you have a smart mouth, curry." He replied. Amber walked over to another customer. Not only was this guy a pervert but he was a racist son of a bitch. She pulled Becky over._

_ "Who the hell is that guy?" she asked._

_ "I don't know but I've seen him around before." Becky answered. "I think he just got out of jail."_

_ "That actually explains a lot and doesn't surprise me." She said. It had been about thirty more minutes and only the racist pervert was still in the corner._

_ "Table ten left you a tip honey!" Becky said. She could hear a snicker when she called her honey from the man in the corner. "All in quarters too!"_

_ "Ooo yay some bubble gum!" Brooke enthused sarcastically. She went over to the table and of course dropped some on the floor. She bent to pick them up and felt a pinch on her bottom. She squeaked and turned around right into the face of the pervert. Becky and Amber tried to pull him off but he shook them off._

_ "Damn girl." He growled. Brooke tried to push him off but of course he wouldn't budge._

_ "Let her go Merle." A voice said. He let go of her and she ran towards the girls. She saw Daryl in the doorway._

_ "Just let me have my fun!" Merle whined. He went over to Brooke again and had his hands out towards her chest. She took his arms slammed him against a wall. He winced and groaned in agony._

_ "You touch me or my girls one more time and I'll make sure your hands come off! You hear me?" Brooke warned. Merle nodded against the brick. "Good!" she let him go. "Now get out of my mother's store!"_

_ "You know I like 'em feisty." Merle said but quickly ran out when Brooke clenched her fists. _

_ "You okay Brooke?" Daryl asked._

_ "Yeah I'm fine. He just pinched my butt that's all. Nothing I can't handle." She said to wear off his concern. _

_ "You okay girls? He didn't hurt you did he?" Daryl asked._

_ "No Daryl but thanks." Amber replied._

_ "Who the hell was that?" Becky asked._

_ "Merle."_

_ "Merle who?" Brooke asked._

_ "Merle Dixon." He replied. The girls looked at each other wide eyed. He could see Brooke was about to apologize. She had nothing to apologize for, if anything he did. "I'm sorry he did that to y'all."_

_ "Daryl don't be sorry. You're not the one who's a pervert." Brooke said._

_ "And a racist." Amber grumbled._

_ "I'll come back by later Brooke. I'm gonna make sure Merle gets home."_

_ "Be careful Daryl." She said. He left the café and Brooke turned to the girls. "That pig is Daryl's brother?" the girls shook their heads. "But Daryl is so different. He's never done anything like that before. He's always so polite and nice."_

_ "I know!" Amber said. "He's never said anything negative towards me before!"_

_ "Just because that dog is his brother doesn't mean he's just like him, girls." Shane said walking into the café. "Daryl filled me in. You girls okay?"_

_ "For the millionth time yes!" Becky said. Shane lifted his hands in a defensive motion._

_ "Sorry!" he said. "Can I get some coffee."_

Daryl had never seen someone do that before. Hell, he'd never slammed Merle to a wall before. That was when he knew that he could trust Brooke. He didn't know why that particular moment but it just happened.


	3. Chapter 3: Confessions

Hey guys! So I probably should've done this in the first chapter but I'm really new at this haha! Anyways thank you so much for checking out my first fan fiction! Feel free to leave a review! Thanks again and as always happy reading!

Chapter 3: Confessions

Daryl had finished up the squirrel for the day and planned on going back out hunting for some bigger game. Merle was still in the woods doing whatever the hell he usually did. He kind of wished he had someone to talk to. He could always go to Brooke for that. Sure he could talk to his mother but Brooke knew how to keep secrets and he could talk about things to her that he couldn't tell his mother. He remembered back to the first time he told Brooke about home.

_It was closing time for the café once again and he really felt like he owed Brooke. His brother had just harassed her. Time to wash some dishes. He walked in and Brooke was the only one left._

_ "Hey Dixon!" she called. "What's up?"_

_ "Brooke I'm really sorry about what happened today." Daryl said picking up some plates._

_ "Daryl it's okay! He didn't do anything to me, just a little pinch. Just be glad I know how to defend myself." She replied. She got a closer look at his face and arms. All had bruises and cuts once again. "Let me clean you up." She sighed. She got the first aid kit and they sat down on the ground behind the counter. "Daryl what happened? Don't just tell me nothing 'cause I know it's not nothing."_

_ "You have to promise not to freak out." He said._

_ "I promise."_

_ "My dad." He answered. They were quiet for a moment. Brooke just stared at him in disbelief._

_ "Oh God Daryl." She sighed. "I'm so sorry! I didn't know!" Brooke paused and thought for a moment. "Is that why your mom wears make up on her arms?" Daryl nodded. Brooke put on some bandages. "Does he hurt Merle too?"_

_ "Yeah. Merle hits me too." He felt her hand go on his back and he winced. Without warning she lifted his shirt and saw fresh cuts on his back and chest. Daryl never wanted Brooke to see that because he knew she would take it hard. They had only known each other for a couple of months but they had become fast friends. She gasped and held back her tears. She went to work on the wounds. _

_ "Daryl I'm so sorry!" she said again._

_ "It ain't your fault they drink." He said as she disinfected the wounds. She really didn't want him to get an infection._

_ "How long?"_

_ "Since I can remember." He replied softly. She wasn't done but he pulled down his shirt. "There's no point Brooke. It'll just happen again." He could see her eyes filling with tears but she held them back and he was doing the same to her surprise. They fell into each other's arms._

_ "I'm so sorry." Was all she could say. He petted her head and shushed her. He didn't know what he was supposed to do though. He had never had someone cry for him._

_ "I'm alright Brooke. It's not like he's tryin to kill me." He said but he knew it was a lie. He had always wondered if his father wanted him dead._

_ "But he's hurting you Daryl!" she sobbed. "I just don't understand why! You're such a good person! I don't understand why anyone would want to hurt you!"_

_ "Brooke I don't even understand why!" he finally broke and stood up. "I try the best I can to please them both but it never works! They're both too drunk to realize I'm doin' the best I can! I'm just not wanted! I always want to do somethin when he's hurtin Mom but I can't because I know I'll get hurt and she'll get beat even worse! Brooke, he makes me drink! He hits me whenever he can. Sometimes I just want to give up!" Brooke followed his every step and even sat on the ground with him in a tiny little corner._

_ "Daryl, please don't ever give up." She sniffed. "You may feel unwanted but know that I want you here." He looked up at her and she was smiling. That smile always got him. "My life would've been so boring if you weren't here." She gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Please don't give up. Promise me that Daryl Dixon."_

_ "I promise." That one little kiss on the cheek gave him hope. He found some place where he was finally wanted._

Daryl snapped out of it once again with the little girl, Sophia standing in front of him looking at his crossbow. She held her doll tightly in her arms. She looked over and saw Daryl looking.

"Is this yours?" she asked.

"Yeah that's mine." He answered.

"How does it work?" she asked. He demonstrated how and was sure to tell the girl to never pick it up.

"Sophia!" Carol called. Sophia quickly thanked Daryl and ran towards her mother. He could see a red mark across Carol's face and bruises on Sophia's arms. He sighed knowing what it felt like.


	4. Chapter 4: Strawberry Fields

Chapter 4: Strawberry Fields

Daryl was busy hunting one day and he had already caught some squirrel and rabbit. He was hoping for some larger game but he hadn't seen anything yet and it had been hours. He did see some wild strawberries that were fully grown on the ground. They had been untouched and were in perfect condition. They were always Brooke's favorite snack. She had anything strawberry that she could get her hands on. Every time he met her she even smelt like fresh strawberries. King County was a major supplier in strawberries and peaches. Every year in May, King County would have their annual strawberry festival. Everyone would dress in red, and all the food contained strawberries. It was one of Brooke's favorite events. He remembered the first year they knew each other he had finally gotten the courage to take her.

_It was May and it was already close to 90 degrees. Brooke and Amber were outside hanging up posters all over town for the King County Strawberry Festival. Rick and Shane approached them while they were busy. Amber saw Shane out of the corner of her eye and started to gussy up. Brooke rolled her eyes but secretly fixed her hair when she saw Rick._

_ "Hey girls!" Shane greeted. "You need some help?"_

_ "Oh, hey Shane! I didn't see you there." Amber flirted and flipped her hair. "No we're fine."_

_ "So why is it a strawberry festival?" Rick asked. He's only been in town for less than a year. "We live in Georgia why not a peach festival?"_

_ "Because strawberries are delicious and no one looks good in bright orange." Brooke said. "Not even you Shane so stop snickering." Shane playfully shoved Brooke. _

_ "So has that Dixon boy asked you to go with him?" Shane asked. Amber gave a flirty laugh but to Brooke she just looked insane._

_ "Um, no." she answered. "Why would he?"_

_ "Well, to me it seems he has a little crush on you." Rick teased._

_ "We're just friends, boys. Nothing more." She cleared. They finished hanging up the posters and ran into Becky. The girls went back to Brooke's house and sat on the porch with her mother. It was about 8 o'clock in the evening and the air was surprisingly cool. They all sipped on some lemonade and chatted about the latest news and gossip. Daryl had a bouquet of Daisies, Brooke's favorite kind of flower, and was dressed nicer than he usually did and had even combed his hair. Of course he had to walk since Merle took the truck but he didn't mind. Mrs. Gina saw him walking around the corner and flashed a smile. _

_ "Oh Brooke, I see a man with Daisies coming to our attention!" she said. Brooke stopped petting her old German Sheppard and looked up to see a figure coming from the shadows. As it got closer she saw Daryl Dixon who was more handsome than usual. He had a white button up shirt, a nice pair of slacks, and he had fixed his usually messy hair._

_ "Evenin' ladies." He greeted with his voice shaking. _

_ "Evening'." They greeted back with sly grins at Brooke._

_ "I would like to speak to Ms. Brooke, um, alone." He stammered._

_ "Sure thing honey." Mrs. Gina said. "Come on girls I'll refresh your drinks. Bryan, come here boy!" the ladies and the dog went inside, leaving Daryl alone with Brooke in her jeans and Georgia t-shirt._

_ "So now I'm Ms. Brooke?" she teased. He smiled nervously. "Okay Mr. Dixon, what's up?" Daryl shakily handed her the Daisies that were wrapped in a bright red bow._

_ "I came to ask you if you wanted to join me in going to the strawberry festival tomorrow?" he asked. Brooke looked at the ground while she was blushing. She could feel the burn to her ears._

_ "Mr. Dixon I would be honored." She replied. He sighed and smiled in relief. They looked behind in the window because they heard squeals from behind the curtain that was moving back and forth. Brooke laughed. "Nosy jerks!"_

_ "Well, um, I'll see you tomorrow." He said. "Goodnight ladies!"_

_ "Wait Daryl!" Brooke ran after him. "How did you know that Daisies where my favorite?"_

_ "Just a hunch I guess." He shrugged. Brooke thought and looked up at him._

_ "You asked Shane didn't you?" Daryl could feel his face getting red. "Alright Daryl, goodnight!" she walked away and as soon as he was far enough away the girls ran out and squealed. Daryl chuckled and kept walking._

_ "Oh my God!" Becky exclaimed. "You have a date with Daryl Dixon!"_

_ "Wait! Who said that they were just friends again?" Amber joked. Mrs. Gina smiled at the girls while Brooke blushed as much as a person possibly could._

_ "He didn't ask me on a date." Brooke suddenly pointed out._

_ "Honey he just asked you-" Becky began._

_ "He didn't say anything about it being a date though." She said. "I told you we were just friends Amber."_

_ "Maybe it'll become a date tomorrow?" Mrs. Gina said braiding Brooke's hair._

_ "Maybe." The ladies could tell that Brooke was a little disappointed with her discovery._

_ The next day was the strawberry festival. The girls had to work until 12:30. Every store closed early and almost everyone would come and join in the festivities. Of course some people had come in for the usual cup of coffee and it was always a slow day on that certain May day. Daryl was sitting in the corner with his cup of coffee and was reading the newspaper. Mrs. Gina was finishing up her strawberry pie and the girls were just talking to each other about their dresses they had picked out. Daryl could barely wait to see Brooke's new dress that she saved for the occasion. A teenage boy who was about eighteen walked through the door in a simple t-shirt and jeans. The t-shirt had Pillsburry Academy written across it so that indicated he was a prep school boy._

_ "Hey Seth!" Brooke greeted. She didn't know that Daryl was in the store. "What can I get ya?"_

_ "Well, Brooke I was wondering if you had anyone taking you to the festival today? If not I would be honored if you let me accompany you." he asked. He a light blonde hair and emerald green eyes. Becky had always commented on how much she wanted to mess with his hair but she never really liked him. He was a bit too snobby. Brooke agreed but said he was nice and polite most of the time. Daryl could feel his ears getting red and he hid his face more with the newspaper._

_ "I already have someone taking me but thank you so much for the offer." Brooke said politely._

_ "Who's taking you?" Seth asked._

_ "Why Daryl Dixon is taking her!" Amber said and nudged her arm._

_ "Daryl Dixon?" Seth asked almost appalled. Brooke crossed her arms._

_ "Why so surprised Seth?" she asked in a defensive manner._

_ "Well he's just a little, well…" he began._

_ "A little what?" Brooke asked a tad more angry than she was before and shifted her weight. "Go on spit it out."_

_ "He's a little shady isn't he? I mean he just doesn't look really presentable. Isn't he just a redneck?" Seth asked but soon realized his mistake._

_ "Excuse me?" Brooke almost yelled. She heard a smack coming from a back table. "Daryl?"_

_ "Alright prep school brat you listen to me!" he roared. "I would really watch what you say because you never know who's here! You don't know me and you don't know what I've been through! I think you should respect Ms. Brooke and respect her decision to go with ME to the festival. I also think you should respect to the rest of the ladies and leave."_

_ "Whatever man!" Seth said. "You're just a piece of white trash. I don't have to deal with you." He started to walk out but Daryl grabbed his shirt collar and punched him. Seth went down with one angry punch and Brooke saw a tear shed from his eye. He looked up at Daryl. "You know I can get you arrested!"_

_ "Yes but you have witnesses claiming you sent him derogatory comments about him." Brooke said. "He was defending himself."_

_ "And I have the right to refuse service to anyone I choose." Mrs. Gina said from behind Brooke. "I'll have to ask you to leave Seth." Seth scoffed and rubbed his face. He walked out of the café defeated. Daryl looked back at the girls._

_ "I'm sorry." He said quietly. Brooke walked over to him and gave him an ice packet for his hand._

_ "He's a douche anyways." Brooke shrugged. "I've never seen him like that before. If I had known you were here I wouldn't have made him finish his description. Now don't leave me at that festival by myself, I'll need someone to eat that pie with." She smiled and closed up shop. "I'll see you in an hour and a half!" She called out and the girls got into Mrs. Gina's car to go get ready at her house. Daryl ran home as fast as he could. He snuck past his father. He didn't have anything red except a flannel shirt. He quickly changed and rolled up the sleeves. He checked his wallet and actually found his money. His mother called him down and she was wearing red as well with some cookies decorated a strawberries. They left in the truck and got there just in time. He waited impatiently for Brooke to get there._

_ "Come on we're going to be late!" Brooke yelled running in her new red, small, heels. The other two soon caught up and they almost knocked down a bald man and his motorcycle._

_ "Watch where ya goin' sugar-tits!" they rolled their eyes._

_ "Why does your mom have to bake so many pies it fills up her car?" Becky panted in her red, button up, shirt dress._

_ "So we get off our lazy-asses!" Amber yelled in her strapless, red, sun dress. They ran into the festival and fixed their hair very quickly. "I see your beaux!" Brooke looked over and saw Daryl biting on his thumb. _

_ "Well go on! We're fifteen minutes late so he probably thinks you stood him up." Becky warned._

_ "Crap!" Brooke cursed and made her way towards him._

_ Daryl heard his name being called and looked up from his thumb to see Brooke running towards him. He instantly lit up and stood up straight. She looked gorgeous. She was wearing a fifties style, bright red dress that had a little bow in the back. Her hair was half pulled back in a strawberry clip and she was a few inches taller than he last remembered. "Hey!" he greeted._

_ "I'm so sorry! Dad's working at the hospital, Mom's car is filled with pies, and Shane is nowhere to be found! We ran here and almost knocked over this old guy!" she panted. "Sorry!" Daryl laughed and he brought her over to the place where they were giving out strawberry lemonade. She almost chugged the entire thing in less than thirty seconds. They walked around a little bit until Mrs. Gina arrived and they helped her set up. As they were walking away Daryl had stuffed cheeks._

_ "What are you eating?" Brooke asked. He opened his mouth and revealed the whipped cream he had sprayed in it. "You didn't share?" Daryl walked over and grabbed the can. She reached out to grab it and he sprayed it on her nose. He laughed hysterically as she squeaked in surprise._

_ "There I shared!" he laughed. She wiped off the whipped cream and smudged on his face. They heard a cough and saw Mrs. Gina and Mrs. Dixon._

_ "I believe that belongs to me." Mrs. Gina smiled. Daryl handed her the can and was quickly pulled by the hand to another table that sold some more sweets. "Well Mary-Anne who would've thought?" she chuckled._

_ "Who would've thought?" Mary-Anne repeated and giggled. A couple of hours later the sky was pink and yellow. The people who worked the festival had begun to light the lanterns that were of course strawberries. Brooke was admiring a bracelet with a strawberry charm. She picked it up but put it back down. She loved it but she knew she had to save her money for a trip she, Amber, and Becky had planned on taking. She walked away to dance with the large group that were clapping in a circle while people where dancing inside of the circle to some banjos, drums, and regular guitars. Daryl snuck to the jewelry table and picked up the same bracelet._

_ "How much is it?" he asked the elderly lady. _

_ "Ten dollars." She replied in a frail voice. He looked in his wallet and he only had ten dollars but handed it to the old lady anyway._

_ "Do you have anything I can wrap it in?" he asked. The elderly lady looked over at Brooke who was smiling and clapping along to the music. _

"_Let me check with Susan." She came back with a strawberry embroidered handkerchief. "Don't worry about the pay. It's on us." He thanked them and wrapped the bracelet up and pocketed it. He was taken by surprise when a strangers hand grabbed his and was pulled into the middle of the circle and collided with Brooke. Their hands were right where they needed to be for dancing. He looked over at the other couple, Amber and Shane and looked at their movements._

_ "Just go with it!" Brooke smiled. He smiled back and bounced around the circle, while twirling her several times. He got really into it and lifted her into the air at one point and spun around. She laughed and the people cheered them on. He dipped her as the song ended and both couples were out of breath. He lifted her up from the dip and they bowed to the crowd. Shane gave Amber a hug and she thanked him for the dance. Amber looked over at Brooke who raised her eyebrows up and down. Amber looked back at the two who were still holding hands and winked. Daryl pulled her over to the side to grab a drink and to sit on a bench. "That was so much fun! I've always wanted to do that!"_

_ "Yeah it was!" he admitted. She took a sip from her tea._

_ "I was not expecting that lift!" she laughed. Daryl reached into his pocket and pulled out the gift. "What's this?" she asked and took the handkerchief._

_ "I got you somethin." He said. She opened and gasped._

_ "I was looking at this bracelet earlier today! I love it! Thank you!" she gave him a hug and put on the bracelet. "How does it look?" she asked standing up and posing._

"_It looks beautiful." He said not looking at the bracelet. She smiled at the bracelet and picked up the charm. They heard a slow song playing in the background. "May I have this dance Ms. Walsh?"_

_ "You most certainly may Mr. Dixon." She said and he grabbed her hand. Her hand was on his should and in his hand. His were on her waist and in her hand. They swayed for a bit and she rested her head on his shoulder. He smirked to himself. They were the only ones in that small area of the park and it was a perfect moment to him. "Thanks so much for this. It's been amazing." She said softly. _

_ "We still have a little bit left." He said. "It ain't over."_

_ "I know but you know me. I forget the proper etiquette easily." She joked._

_ "Well darlin' I ain't proper so I don't mind." He replied. "I'm gonna twirl ya." She lifted her head and was spun around and crashed back into him. Her small nose was barely touching his and she was looking straight into his steel blue eyes. He rested his forehead on hers and he knew he could just kiss her with one quick movement._

_ "Hey there Darylina!" A gruff voice greeted. Daryl sighed and Brooke looked behind him. The old man. They separated but Daryl still kept her next to him."Never knew you were one for dancin'." Merle laughed. Daryl silently grew angry and Brooke squeezed his hand. Somehow she knew. "Come on little brother, Mom's waitin' in the car for ya." Merle looked at Brooke. "Hey sugar tits! You almost knocked me down earlier."_

_ "Kinda wish I did." She grumbled and Daryl hid his smirk._

_ "Bye Brooke." Daryl said sadly and walked over to his brother. _

_ "Bye Daryl." She replied quietly and walked over to the station her mom was working. Amber and Becky saw the last few minutes of their dance and goodbye. "Okay girls lets clean!" Brooke said and Becky patted her back._

Daryl got a small container out of one of his cargo pockets and put two large strawberries into it. He pocketed it and went back to the peace and quiet. The peace was quickly disturbed by big boots clomping behind him, scaring off any game he might have had. He turned to see Merle behind him.

"Hey little brother!" he greeted. " You pickin' the flowers? I'm goin to Atlanta to get some supplies with Chinaman and a small group."

"What?" Daryl asked.

"You deaf little brother?"

"Merle that's really dangerous! Why do you even want to go? You hate the people here!" Daryl explained.

"That's why!" Merle said. "I need to get out of here before I go crazy!"

_"You mean you're not already crazy?"_ Daryl thought but kept his mouth shut.

"Maybe you should go? You were starin' at those berries for a long time!" Merle laughed. "What you thinkin' 'bout?"

"Nothin' that concerns you Merle!" Daryl snapped.

"You thinkin' about that little bitch again?" Merle laughed. "Man give up. She's dead and you know it. Might as well get over it. The two blonde ones are single ya know?" Daryl roared and attacked Merle. He punched him repeatedly in wherever he could hit. He got off of Merle and shook out his hand. Merle just laughed and sat up. "That's right little brother, let it out!"

"She told me about that time Merle!" Daryl confessed. "I know you're worried too!"

"She told you she…" Merle began.

"What that she saved your ass from gettin' killed by your friends?" he said. "And then patched you up afterwards? Yeah she told me." Daryl walked out of the woods with his game and went into his tent.


	5. Chapter 5: The First Night

Chapter 5: First Night

It was night time the same day that Daryl had fought with Merle. People that were going planned their route in the city and everyone else just sat around the fire.

"Thanks for hunting for us Daryl." Carl yawned. When Carl was born Rick immediately made Shane and Brooke the aunt and uncle. Brooke would usually watch Carl when she had a day off. Carl would always want to meet up with Daryl with her so that maybe he could play with Daryl's black lab, Babe. He never really liked kids all too much but Carl was an okay kid.

"No problem kid." He grumbled. Those were the first words anyone had spoken to him besides Merle. Daryl simply stood up and retired to his tent. He never thought that one person gone from his life would ever cause him this much loneliness. Whenever Daryl and Brooke were teenagers, at least once a week she could expect him to sneak into her house so he could run away from home for a night.

_ It was in the middle of July and it was pouring down rain. It was eleven o'clock at night and Daryl walked to the Walsh household. It wasn't unusual to get beat of course but this time was different. Somehow his father had managed to beat him to the point that he was holding his side and limping. He desperately needed some patching up and he only knew one person who would keep quiet. He jumped the fence and snuck past the dog but the mutt was no problem since he was almost completely deaf. He saw the little white vine gate against the house and used it as a ladder to her room._

_ Brooke was the only one still awake in the house and was, to her better judgment, was watching Dawn of the Dead. She clutched her sheets to her chest and tried not to get too scared. A loud thunder boom shook the whole house and she jumped. She heard a knock on her window and pulled open her pink curtains. A flash of lightening went off and all she saw was the silhouette of a man's head. She screamed bloody murder and fell back on her bed. The person knocked on the window again and she quickly opened it and pulled Daryl inside._

_ "Daryl what the hell were you doing?" She asked as he winced in pain and grabbed on to his side as she pulled him out of the window. "What did he do this time?" she asked sadly._

_ "A couple of beer bottles found their way on my body." He said. "What are you watchin'?"_

_ "Dawn of the Dead." She answered but quickly covered his mouth. _

_ "Hey Brooke, you okay?" Shane asked knocking on the door. Good thing she locked it before she started to watch the movie. She needed her alone time with her scary movie. She paused it with her hand still on his mouth._

_ "Yeah I'm fine! Just the storm and a scary movie that's all!" she replied. "Nothing to worry about!"_

_ "Alright kiddo I'm goin' back to bed! Night, Love you!" he said._

_ "Love you too!" she said and as soon as she heard his door shut she removed her hand. "He hit your head too?" she asked Daryl and he nodded. "Okay I'm going to go downstairs to get an ice pack and a pair of PJ's for you really quick. Do not leave this room!" she snuck out into the hallway and tiptoes her way to the kitchen. She was wearing a simple hot pink cami with a pair of leopard print shorts. She walked into the laundry room, got him a white t-shirt, a pair of dry boxers, and a pair of blue flannel PJ pants. She walked back upstairs to her room and tossed him the clothes. Hand me your wet ones when you're done and I'll leave them to dry." She went into her bathroom; got her bandages, Neosporin, pain killers, a wet wash cloth, and a pair of tweezers. "You presentable yet?"_

_ "Think so." He said and she walked out with all her materials. He sat down on the bed and he started to pick shards of glass out of his hair. "Thanks for the clothes and the surgery." He said._

_ "Don't worry about it. Where did he hit you?" he lifted his shirt and she saw glass sticking out of his left side. She grabbed her tweezers and began to pull them out. _

_ "How deep are they? Do I need stitches?" he asked worriedly._

_ "Thankfully no I just need to put some bandages over them." She sighed. "Daryl, have you ever thought about running away?"_

_ "Yeah I've thought about it many times. I just don't have anywhere to go." He said grimacing from the removal of the glass. _

_ "You could stay here." She said. He chuckled a little bit._

_ "Darlin' I don't think your folks would like that very much." He said. She shrugged and smiled._

_ "It could work you know. You could stay in my old tree house and I could sneak food to you. For when it's raining you could hide under my bed or in my closet." She joked._

_ "I'm not doin' the closet thing because you'll make the comment of me coming out." He smirked. She laughed back but got serious very quickly. _

_ "Daryl, I'm really worried about you." She said. "I just can't stand the fact that you can't run away or just be free."_

_ "I'll be free when I'm dead."_

_ "But you should be free now." She said and thought for a minute or two. "I want you to come here whenever you feel like you need to be free okay?"_

_ "Are you sure?" he asked. "Hearing about your father's reputation I don't think he would like a boy in your bed." She gave him a sly smile._

_ "He doesn't have to know. It'll be our secret." She said._

_ "Alright, it's our secret." He said. She wiped his face clean of dirt, mud, and blood. He sat back against the pillows and she did the same. She handed him her water and gave him a pain killer. "Let's watch the movie!" he said excitedly. She smiled and resumed the movie. She sat back next to him and pulled herself under the sheets. The scene continued and of course the storm acted up again. Another crack of thunder roared and she jumped violently. "You afraid of a little thunder, Walsh?" he asked teasingly._

_ "Shut-up Dixon!" she smiled. "It just kinda sneaks up on you, you know?" he laughed._

_ "Whatever Brooke. Can I ask you a question?"_

_ "Shoot."_

_ "Your mom hasn't been at the café a lot lately. Is everything okay?" he asked._

_ "Oh yeah, she's fine." He knew she was lying and gave her a look. She sighed. "No. She's been worse than she's usually been. She's feeling better though."_

_ "Wait, Brooke what's wrong with Mrs. Gina?" he asked. She bit her lip and ran her hands through her hair, a habit she had picked up form Shane._

_ "Mom was diagnosed with leukemia a year ago." She said. "She's been a fighter through it this entire time and it's just now hitting her hard. She's going through treatments but they're taking a toll on her. She's promising me that she will make it to see me graduate." She smiled and fought back her tears._

_ "Wow..." Daryl said amazed. "I can't believe it." _

_ "So are you spending the night?" she asked sniffing a little bit._

_ "If it's alright with you." He said warily. She nodded and set the alarm for five so that he would be gone before her parents woke up. She led them in a quick prayer before going to bed and they fell asleep. A couple of hours later Daryl woke up and found himself holding Brooke while she rested her head and hand on his chest. "Just to let you know I don't usually cuddle." He said._

_ "Tryin' to sleep here Dixon." She said grumpily. _

_ "You awake?" he asked._

_ "I may fall asleep fast but I'm a very light sleeper unlike Shane who snores like a banshee." She smirked obviously half asleep._

_ "Sorry." He said, held her a little tighter, and drifted back off to sleep. The alarm clock started to ring and Brooke removed her head, which had moved up in the middle of the night to nuzzle his neck, to face it. She groaned and hit it off. She looked over at Daryl who was still sound asleep._

_ "Daryl?" she whispered. He didn't respond so she took his shoulders and shook him lightly. "Daryl wake up!" he grabbed her waist and pulled her to the other side of him._

_ "It's too early." He whined rubbing his cheek against her head. "We have another hour." Before she could blink Daryl had drifted to sleep. She sighed in frustration and ran her hand through her hair._

_ "Eh, what's one more hour?" she fell back asleep in his arms. One more hour was critical though. Brooke popped up from her bed after hearing her dad trumping around the house. "Shit!" she exclaimed. "Daryl! You need to go!" he groggily opened his eyes and rubbed them._

_ "What the hell's goin' on?" he asked._

_ "They're awake!" she hushly exclaimed. Daryl got his boots and put them on and hopped out of the window. _

_ "Remember, it's goin' to be our secret." He smirked before heading out._

_ "Our secret." She repeated. She decided to stay up and get ready early. After taking a shower and finishing her hair she realized that Daryl had left his clothes. She snuck them down into the laundry room and put them in the washing machine. She sat on the empty dryer and read __To Kill a Mocking Bird__. She switched places once she moved the clothes to the dryer._

_ "Hey baby girl!" Shane greeted. "Did you get some sleep last night?"_

_ "Yes I finally got some sleep thank you very much." She said closing her book._

_ "I thought we just did laundry?" he asked._

_ "Yeah I forgot some clothes from last time." She shrugged and walked out of the room to use the bathroom. Shane had a look on his face._

_ "She never forgets any of her clothes on laundry day." He said. He looked behind him to make sure no one was watching and opened the dryer. He pulled out a pair of ripped jeans, a flannel shirt, a pair of socks, and a pair of boxers. His eyes widened and he heard the toilet flush. He slammed the clothes back in and started the dryer. His face got red with anger and confusion. "How did he get in the house?" he thought. "What did he do to my little sister?" he thought. Brooke squeezed past him and resumed her book._

_ "You okay Shane?" she asked. "You look like you're burning up?"_

_ "Oh I'm fine." He said trying not to convey his anger. "So what did you do last night?"_

_ "I just watched a movie and went to bed." She said. It was the truth other than the fact that Daryl was spending the night so technically she wasn't lying to him._

_ "Okay." He said and walked away running his hand through his hair like he always did when he was frustrated._

_ Later that day, the café had opened and only the girls were working. Mrs. Gina stayed at home again while Dr. Walsh looked after her. Shane and Rick were chatting with the girls and the bell rung that someone had came in._

_ "Hey Daryl!" Becky greeted. "What can we get you?"_

_ "The usual." He said. Amber went over to Shane's table to refill his coffee and flirt while Becky and Brooke got the order ready. Once it was done Daryl came to the counter and got his peppermint tea and chocolate chip cookie._

_ "Wait just one second!" Brooke whispered to him. She made sure no one was looking and pulled out his clothes from under the counter. Shane looked over at the right time and saw her handing him his clothes. He clenched his fists under the table. _

_ "Did you wash my clothes?" he asked._

_ "They were dirty!" She defended. "Now you have a pair of clean clothes and a new pair of PJ's." He rolled his eyes._

_ "Alright then. Bye girls!" he said._

_ "Bye Daryl!" Rick saw a look in Shane's eyes, a look of pure fury._

_ "Shane?" he asked. Shane stood up and walked out of the café. "What the hell just happened?"_

_ Daryl was walking out side and he had just finished eating his cookie and had his clean clothes under is left arm. He was walking to his truck and he heard something in the background._

_ "Dixon!" Shane roared. Daryl stopped and looked at a very angry Shane._

_ "Uh, Walsh!" he sarcastically yelled back._

_ "Would you mind telling me what the hell you were doing in my little sister's bedroom last night?" he asked almost too close for comfort._

_ "I have no idea what you're talking about." Daryl said. Shane face had the look of "I'm gonna kick your ass!" so Daryl decided to drop the act. "Nothing happened okay!"_

_ "The hell nothing happened? Why were your clothes in her room last night? More importantly why was she washing the clothes you wore after you left? What did you do to Brooke?" he asked._

_ "She gave me a dry set of clothes! She never saw any part of me naked! I just needed a place to go and Brooke was the first thing that came to my mind. NOTHING happened! If you were in my situation you would understand. He hopped into his truck and drove away. Shane stood there in the middle of the road not knowing what to believe. He turned to go on the sidewalk and saw Brooke with her arms crossed._

_ "Nothing happened." She simply said. "We're just friends Shane."_

_ "What does he mean by situation?" he asked calming down knowing that she was telling the truth. _

_ "It's nothing Shane. Just come back to the café." She said and Shane followed._

_ "Brooke, I won't tell anyone else. I promise." He said. Brooke ran into his arms and hugged him. He had a pretty good idea what kind of situation Daryl was in. He saw some dried blood stains on the shirt earlier. That night was only the beginning. Brooke's bedroom had quickly become his sanctuary, as weird as it sounded. It was the one place he knew barely no one would look for him._

Merle threw himself onto his cot on the opposite side of the tent.

"Alright baby brother, we're leavin' early in the mornin' so make sure you wake up to say goodbye!" he slurred. "Maybe sugar-tits and me will hit it off?"

"Whatever Merle." Daryl said and went to sleep.


	6. Chapter 6: A Birthday Present

Hey guys! I just wanted to give out a MASSIVE THANK YOU for reading my story! Thanks so much for the reviews! I love all the feedback and support. I will admit I did make Shane a little too observant in the last chapter. I now noticed it was almost a creepy observant, haha! Chapter 4 was definitely my favorite chapter to write so far! It was a lot of fun making Daryl a nervous wreck! I hope to leave as many chapters as I can in a day because school for me starts pretty soon. If I don't finish it before school then I'll assign a day for me to post. Feel free to leave reviews! Thanks and as always, happy reading!

Chapter 6: A Birthday Present

It was the day that the small group left for Atlanta. Daryl made sure to get up early so that he could get ready and kill a deer he'd been tracking and say goodbye to Merle. Andrea was saying goodbye to the rest of the group.

"Why are you going Andrea? What about Amy?" Dale asked. He was the father figure of the group and acted like the Palmer girls father.

"I'm going for Amy, Dale." She said. "I want to get her a birthday present so maybe I'll find something at that store that Glenn's talking about."

"You riskin' your life for a birthday present?" Daryl asked but he couldn't really talk much. He had gone out of his way to get a birthday present before.

"Yes." She answered. "Maybe a necklace or something. She said something about her liking mermaids so maybe I can find something like that. I've never made it to any of her surprise birthday parties before and I think I'll be able to make up for it now." Daryl zoned our and got lost in another memory.

_It was September seventeenth and the leaves were turning a bit earlier than usual. They hadn't begun to fall but they were all different colors of orange. Tomorrow was Brooke's sixteenth birthday and he had already gotten her present. Now that he had a decent job he could pay for it himself. The job may have broken his back but he got paid well and could actually put his working gloves to good use. He was walking with Merle a couple of days before day to the coffee shop when he saw something in the boutique the Becky Tate's mother owned. A golden necklace with little star in the middle and an even smaller one next to it._

_ "You do know that's a girl store right little brother?" Merle asked. "Or is it more accurate to call you Darylina?"_

_ "Brooke's birthday is in three days." Daryl explained._

_ "How old is sugar-tits turning?" he asked._

_ "She's turning sixteen. I'm gonna go see how much it is. You comin'?" Daryl asked._

_ "I'm comin don't get your panties in a twist!" they walked in and they saw Becky and Amber picking up some dresses. _

_ "Hey guys!" Amber said._

_ "What are you guys doing?" Becky asked._

_ "I saw the star necklace in the window and I was thinkin' that Brooke would like it for her birthday. What are you girls up to?"_

_ "We're picking out dresses for Brooke's surprise party!" Amber said picking up a light pink dress._

_ "Surprise party?" Daryl asked._

_ "Yeah. We sent you an invite, didn't you get it?" Becky asked. Daryl shook his head and looked at Merle but he was too busy looking at Becky. "Anyways here's the plan. You need to be at the café at 6:30. We'll call Mrs. Gina to tell her we're ready and she'll make sure that Brooke is all dressed up for whatever excuse. She'll tell Brooke there's been an accident at the store and they'll come there. We turn off the lights and once she walks in we'll surprise her! Shane's gonna surprise her by actually coming back from college with Rick. Just remember to dress nice and 6:30 sharp!"_

_ "I'll be there!" he said. "How much is the necklace?" Becky's mom walked in from the back room. _

_ "It's thirty dollars." She said. Becky looked just like her mother. Daryl got his wallet and thankfully had fifty dollars. He paid for it and got it wrapped."Thanks!" he yelled back as he left._

_ "That Becky girl is hot ain't she?" Merle asked._

_ "Merle, she ain't even eighteen yet!" he said._

_ "She will be soon enough." He grinned slyly_

_ "If you ever do anything to her you know Brooke will kill you right?" Daryl said._

_ "With the way I'll make her feel I don't think she'll let sugar-tits." He chuckled darkly. Daryl sighed and rubbed his hand down his face._

_ It was the day of the surprise party. Daryl didn't have anything nice to wear so he just wore the same thing he wore when he asked Brooke to the strawberry festival except with jeans. He grabbed his present and card and quickly got in the truck before Merle or his father could see him. He got there right at 6:30 and he was quickly pulled inside. A lot of other people in town were there. A lot of teenagers that he didn't know where there that were probably from school. Amber stood up on a table._

_ "Alright everyone we need it to be silent!" she yelled. She grabbed her cell phone and called Mrs. Gina. "We're ready Mrs. Gina! Dr. Walsh is already here." Daryl looked over to see a man that had brown hair that was combed back and was wearing a blue button up shirt and some jeans."Bye. Alright everyone show time! Everyone hide behind something. Becky walked over to him and pulled him behind the counter with the girls, Shane, Rick, and Dr. Walker._

_Back at the Walsh household_

_ Mrs. Gina had told Brooke they were going to have a dress up night for her birthday. Mrs. Gina was wearing a pretty dark green dress. Brooke was wearing a light, bright, yellow dress with some red pumps and her hair curled. She wore the little charm bracelet Daryl gave her at the festival._

_ "Alright thanks Amber!" Mrs. Gina whispered. She acted to look worried and jogged over to Brooke. "Brooke we need to go to the café!"_

_ "Mom what's going on?" she asked._

_ "The store's been broken into! We need to go!"_

_ "Oh my God! Let me get our purses!" she said. Thank goodness Mrs. Gina was an actress before she opened the store. They ran to the car and drove to the café. They got out of the car and walked to the door. "Why aren't the police here yet?" she asked._

_ "I don't know!" Mrs. Gina exaggerated. She opened the door for Brooke and turned on the light. Everyone jumped out from their hiding place._

_ "Surprise!" they yelled. Brooke squeaked from being scared. She soon started to laugh and hugged her mother. She ran to her father and hugged him._

_ "I thought you had to work?" she asked._

_ "Not that many women went into labor tonight! Happy Birthday!" he chuckled._

_ "What about us we left college for you?" Shane smiled and she screamed. Amber and Becky turned on the music and people started to party. She stopped hugging Shane and Rick. _

_ "You sneaky little things!" she told Amber and Becky. They joined in a group hug and she went to Daryl to hug him. The party continued for a while, they sang happy birthday and she blew out the candle on her strawberry flavored cake. She opened all her presents except for one._

_ "Did everyone give the birthday girl her present?" Shane asked. Mrs. Gina looked over at Daryl and the others soon followed. _

_ "Um, here. He said and passed her the small box. _

_ "That sure is small compared to my present." Rick joked and Shane elbowed his side and Brooke rolled her eyes. She opened the card first because that was the proper etiquette and smiled._

_ "Aw, thank you!" she said and quickly moved to the present. Daryl knew it was small compared to the expensive dress her parents gave her and a lot of other things her friends gave her. She pulled on the bow and opened the pink box. She gasped and held it up. Everyone awed at the necklace. "I love it! It's so pretty! Thank you Daryl!" the music started again and Brooke gave Daryl a hug. They walked over to go outside but for that they had to go through the back room. They opened the door and Amber was in there. Daryl and Brooke had watched an episode of The Nanny a couple of days before and he got an idea. He turned the light low and motioned for Brooke to be quiet._

_ "Sh, don't speak. Don't turn around." He said imitating Shane._

_ "Shane?" she asked. He got close to her and blew in her ear and she shivered. Brooke clapped her hand over her face._

_ "I'll do anything you want!" she said in a high pitched voice. Daryl looked over at Brooke and gave her a mischievous grin._

_ "Meow like a cat." He said in a low voice. Brooke was trying with all of her might not to laugh._

_ "What?"_

_ "Just do it." He said and Amber did as she was told. After a few meows she turned around and screamed. Brooke finally stopped holding her breath. _

_ "You are so evil!" she yelled and stormed out of the room. Brooke held herself up and Daryl was holding his sides because he was laughing so hard. The two walked outside and Brooke wiped her eyes from the tears of laughter and he took a couple of deep breaths._

_ "You're evil!" she smiled. "But you're a genius, I give you props!" she said._

_ "Why thank you!" he said. They were out on the patio and they had set up twinkle light outside. "So, did you like your present?"_

_ "I love my present." She said and she held out the box. She pulled out the necklace and attempted to put it on._

_ "You need help?" he asked. She nodded and handed him the necklace. She turned around and pulled her hair to her side. He clasped and she turned around. "It looks great." He said._

_ "Thank you." She said._

_ "Are you sad you didn't get a car?" he asked. She'd been looking at a red Beetle for a long time._

_ "Actually no." she said. "I would've missed your truck." She smiled._

_ "I would still let you ride in it!" he defended._

_ "No you wouldn't. You would say to get in your own damn car!" she teased. He laughed._

_ "Well happy sixteenth birthday!" he said and he sat down on a bench._

_ "Thank you. Your present was my favorite." She said as she sat down. She leaned he head in and rested it on his shoulder. _

_ "Well I'm honored." He said and kissed her forehead. She looked up and he knew she was about to kiss him back._

_ "Hey guys!" Shane said and walked outside. "Rick would like a dance with the birthday girl."_

_ "Oh okay, I'm coming." She got up from the bench and smoothed out her dress. She went inside and left the two boys alone. Shane raised his eyebrows in a mocking manner and turned to leave him outside. It always happened this way. Daryl would get that close and of course something interrupted them. Usually it was a brother that was too nosy for their own good. They were always that close but after a while they just seemed to give up on trying to kiss each other. They would give each other friendly pecks on the cheeks but nothing more._

__Daryl snapped out of it once again when everyone left that small area to say goodbye to the rest of the Atlanta group.

"Bye little brother!" Merle said.

"You be careful and watch your back. Watch your actions." Daryl warned. Merle just laughed and slapped Daryl's back. They left and everyone else had tears in their eyes or just carried on. Amy was a wreck as soon as Andrea left and Daryl couldn't help but feel bad for the young girl. She soon sulked away to her tent. "All for a birthday present." He mumbled.


	7. Chapter 7: Promises

Chapter 7: Promises

Daryl had packed up and was ready to track that deer down. Merle and that small group had left a couple of hours ago and Daryl wasn't as worried as he was before. In fact he was more worried about the rest of the group than Merle.

"Alright I'm goin' huntin'." He told Shane.

"Be careful Daryl." He said without looking at him. Daryl rolled his eyes and walked towards the woods. The only time that Shane has ever respected him is when Daryl was there when Brooke needed him most. That was the only time Shane ever paid him any sort of respect.

_It was June and Brooke had just graduated high school. She wasn't at the café today and neither was Mrs. Gina. He walked in and saw Becky and Amber crying while they closed up the shop. They told him what happened._

_ "Where is she now?" he asked._

_ "She's at home with Shane." Amber hiccupped and brought a tissue up to her face._

_ "Her Dad didn't want them there. He said it would be too much for them. You should know that she likes to be alone in situations like this." Becky sobbed. Daryl thanked the girls and ran to the Walsh household. He furiously knocked on the large door and Shane opened it. He could tell that Shane had been crying but not very much._

_ "Where is she?" he asked. Shane motioned the backyard and he led Daryl through the house. Shane motioned up towards the tree house and Daryl thanked him very quickly. He climbed up the ladder and into the house. Brooke quickly rubbed her eyes._

_ "Hey Daryl!" she forced a smile. He just looked at her. "I'm fine." She lied and he crawled over in the small space to her and gave her a hug._

_ "No you're not." He said and she collapsed in his arms. She let the tears break free._

_ "She was fine yesterday! This morning Dad tried to wake her up but she wouldn't wake up! She barely had a heartbeat and Dad drove her to the hospital. He called Shane and…" she sighed and held Daryl tighter. "He said that her body just couldn't take it anymore. Mom's gone. My mother's gone. I'll never see her in the café again. Oh my God, I haven't thought about the café! What's going to happen to it? Oh God! She's never going to be able to… ugh I can't take it."_

_ "Brooke, I'm so sorry." He sighed. "I promise you I will be here with you whenever you need me. I'll help you get through this. Just remember that she'll always be there with you. She'll always be in that café and she'll never truly leave us." He lifted her head so she would look at him. "You know that Brooke. I promise I will never leave."_

_ "It's just I didn't think she would leave this soon." She sniffed._

_ "I know." She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the lips. This time there were no interruptions but Daryl knew it was just a thank you. She stopped and hugged him again._

_ "Thank you." She simply said._

_ "Do you want me to stay?" He asked._

_ "Only if you want to." He stayed with her until she fell asleep and he carefully carried her out. Shane walked out and they set her down on the couch._

_ "Daryl, I know that we don't particularly get along but I want to thank you. You make Brooke happy and today you really, well; you really proved that you care about her." Shane said. "I'm going to try to be nicer to you for Brooke's sake because she needs you."_

_ "Thanks Shane. I'll try to do the same." They shook hands and Daryl walked away. Was Shane nicer to Daryl? Most of the time and he tried his damn hardest. Daryl stood by Brooke at the funeral and everything else. He promised he would never leave her but sometimes promises are hard to keep. They might be just the hardest things to stay true to. He'll never forget that time he let her down. That one time he failed her. It took another death for him to finally go back to fulfilling that promise._

_ It was the November after Mrs. Gina passed away. Daryl had just turned twenty and Brooke was seventeen. Brooke's Aunt Sandra had taken over the café but didn't change a thing. According to Brooke, Miss Sandra was the coolest aunt in the family. All three of the girls got accepted into Georgia. Amber and Brooke planned on becoming doctors and Becky went to the business school. They would help Miss Sandra with the café whenever they came back to visit King County and it was Thanksgiving break so that means they worked almost every day. One night all of the ladies were working. It was a packed night tonight. The bell rung and Mrs. Dixon walked through, followed by Daryl, Merle, and Jack Dixon. Brooke's eyes grew wide at the sight of Daryl's father. She looked over at Becky and Amber who had the same expression. All of the family, except Jack, had bruises on their arms. Brooke put on a smile and greeted them._

_ "Hi welcome to Gina's Café! Take a seat wherever you like!" she said cheerfully but Jack just grunted and led them to a booth near a window. "I'll be with you shortly." She said and was pulled under the counter._

_ "That's their Dad!" Becky exclaimed. "What do we do? We have to do something?"_

_ "They have bruises all over their arms and on their faces! Make up does not cover it up no matter what Mrs. Dixon does!" This was the first time any of them had actually interacted with Jack Dixon. They knew they had to do something to help the family. Brooke had a light bulb go off in her head._

_ "Alright here's the plan. Becky and I will distract the family. Amber, you will write on a napkin that he's abusive with some other information and we'll find a way to give it to Officer Cooper and Officer Parsons. Got it?"_

_ "Got it!" they said in unison. _

_ "Waitress?" they heard Jack call. Brooke gave the girls an assuring look and grabbed a note pad._

_ "Hi my name's Brooke and I'll be your server this evening! What can I get you?" they told her their order and Goodbye Earl came on the radio. She walked past Becky. "Fitting song for the occasion." Becky smiled._

_ "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" she asked and Brooke nodded. She looked over at Amber and gave her a nod. Amber got a sharpie and a napkin and started writing. Becky and Brooke started to sing, alternating which verses the other sang. People sang and clapped along. All eyes were on the two and Amber made her move. The officers read the napkin. Brooke skipped over to the table still singing._

_ "And they tipped their hats and said thank you ladies," her eyes narrowed. "if you hear from him let us know." The officers winked and the girls finished the song. Their plan was in motion. Two days later the officers came in and tipped their hats. Brooke, Amber, and Becky came closer to the counter._

_ "So what happened?" Amber asked. Officer Cooper sighed and looked sadly at the girls._

_ "There's nothing we can do without evidence." He said._

_ "Evidence? There's enough evidence they walk around with bruises on the bodies! All of them except Jack!" Brooke said making sure she wasn't disturbing the peace in the store._

_ "Ladies," Officer Parsons began. "we need to catch him in order to arrest him or a confession from him or any of the family members."_

_ "None of them will confess though." Becky said._

_ "I'm sorry ladies but there's nothing we can do."_

_ "Thanks for trying." Brooke said. "Here have some coffee on the house for your troubles."_

_ "Thank you ladies." They tipped their hats and left the store. The girls ran into the storage room._

_ "This is complete bull shit!" Brooke yelled._

_ "Complete bull shit!" Amber repeated. "No evidence my ass!"_

_ "Complete bull shit!" Becky said. "Alright, no one can figure out what we've done. I don't want to deal with Jack-ass Dixon." _

_ "Me neither." Brooke said. "I don't want to deal with any of them. Daryl and Merle would be furious if he knew I tried to get his dad arrested."_

_ "It's our secret. It dies with us." Amber said and they all agreed. They turned around to see who else, but Merle Dixon in the doorway. Brooke ran her hands through her hair nervously._

_ "So that's why they were there last night." Merle said._

_ "Merle please don't tell your father!" Becky begged. "We were just trying to help you, Daryl, and your mom. Okay we're worried and this had been going on long enough. Hell, you even moved out of the house and he still beats you." Merle thought for a minute and looked back at the other two girls. For that one moment, Merle was a decent man._

_ "Alright, I won't tell anyone." He began to walk out but hugged all three girls instead. "Thanks for trying." He said and he walked out of the café. They all let out a sigh of relief._

_ "I think we're safe." Becky said. She was wrong. One stormy night only Amber and Brooke were working. Becky was sick with an allergic reaction she had to a spider bite but would return the next day. No one was in the shop and it was time to close up. Jack Dixon stormed into the café heavily intoxicated. Amber and Brooke exchanged horrified looks. Amber walked out from behind the counter._

_ "Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." She said politely and Brooke joined her._

_ "You!" he said pointing his finger at the two of them. "Where's the blonde bitch?"_

_ "Sick." Brooke said._

_ "You should know not to mess with Jack Dixon!" he roared and pushed Amber. Brooke quickly stood in front of her but Jack threw Brooke onto a couple of tables, smashing plates and coffee cups against her body. He charged at Amber but she threw in a couple of punches to his face. He was about to hit her but Brooke kneed him in the groin. He fell to the ground and groaned in pain. _

_ "Run!" Brooke yelled and grabbed Amber's hand. They flew out of the store and into the dark night. Rain was stabbing at their faces and they could barely see. They could here Jack Dixon stumbling/running behind them. Brooke slipped and fell on her knee and Amber picked her up. They ran into the neighborhood where Amber lived._

_ "I can't go much further!" Amber said._

_ "We're almost to your house!" Brooke replied. They made it to her house._

_ "Come on!" Amber yelled._

_ "No! Lock your doors and windows and don't tell anyone what happened! He wants me!" she said and kept running. She hid behind a car for a minute. She'd also hit her head pretty hard when she hit her knee. She could hear him calling her name and she bolted. She couldn't take much more of it. Head lights beamed on her and pulled up next to her. The car door flew open._

_ "Get in!" he yelled. She didn't hesitate but as soon as she closed the door she lost consciousness. Her eyes opened and she was in a hospital room. She sprung up but soon groaned in pain. She had some stitches and a brace on her knee cap. Her head was ringing with pain. She saw Daryl asleep in a chair._

_ "A regular knight in shining Chevy." She said quietly. He woke up._

_ "Oh my God, Brooke!" he exclaimed and held her tight. "I'm so sorry! I never thought he would hurt you!"_

_ "I'm fine Daryl." She said. The doctor walked in._

_ "Well good morning sleepy head!" he greeted. "Your father is coming in soon from his shift to take you home."_

_ "Thanks Dr. Applegate." She said._

_ "So what happened?" he asked._

_ "I fell out of my tree house." She lied._

_ "You need to be more careful." He shook his head and Dr. Walsh ran in._

_ "Brooke! Oh my, sweetie!" he said and hugged her._

_ "This young man found her and brought her in." Dr. Applegate said._

_ "Thank you Daryl." Dr. Walsh said. He just nodded. Brooke was going to be in crutches for two weeks. A week after the attack the girls were all working. Brooke had Daryl's cup of peppermint tea and chocolate chip cookie waiting for him. She went into the back room to get something while the rest of the girls were serving customers. The door quickly opened and quickly closed. Brooke came out of the room and saw an envelope on the table. Amber excused herself and went outside for a moment._

_ "Daryl?" she called after him and he slowly turned around. "What's going on?"_

_ "Amber, the letter explains everything. Goodbye." He said and drove away. Amber walked back in and Brooke just stared at the letter._

_ "Brooke?" she asked. Becky handed her the letter. "Mrs. Dixon left and if Jack see's you with him he'll kill you and us?" Brooke nodded and she began to cry. _

_ "This is all my fault!" she wept. "His mother left because she figured out the cops couldn't do anything! Now your lives are in danger!"_

_ "Honey, we helped you send the cops to their house. We're sticking by you no matter what!" Becky said and all three joined in a hug._

_Daryl didn't talk to Brooke for another year. He saw her outside of bars trying to calm down Shane. Shane had picked up drinking after Mrs. Gina died. He saw Shane push her but Brooke knew how to take care of herself. He would walk past the store wishing to talk to her. He loved Brooke and that's why he had to leave her._

_ One day in November, Brooke was eighteen and Daryl was 21, it was Thanksgiving break and the girls helped Miss Sandra with the café again. Becky gasped when she was reading the paper. _

_ "Brooke!" she yelled and Brooke ran over. "Look!"_

_ "Half-off mattresses for sale?" Brooke asked._

_ "No!" Amber said and pointed. "This!"_

_ "Jack Dixon died on Sunday morning die to liver failure. He is a beloved father and will be missed." She read and shook her head slowly. "I'll be back in a little while girls!" She left and went to the local florist. She got some Daisies and tied them in a camouflage bow that she had found. She drove in her red Beetle to the Dixon house. She wore a black t-shirt because she didn't pack a black dress. She knocked on the door and no one answered. She knocked again and got the same result. She put down the bouquet on the doorstep with a card that read I'm sorry for your loss. She sighed and her eyes filled with water. She turned around to go back to her car and saw Daryl standing there with water in his eyes. He ran to her and scooped her up to hug her._

_ "I'm so sorry about your dad!" she wept. He looked at her. _

_ "Hey, I'm free now." That's all he said and they laughed nervously. They had never been so happy to see each other. Daryl continued with his promise. It would be hard to keep but he knew that Brooke wouldn't give up on him._

Daryl wasn't that deep into the woods when he heard a scream the pierced through his thoughts. He ran back towards the camp.


	8. Chapter 8: Safe and Sound

Chapter 8: Safe and Sound

Daryl ran back to the camp with his crossbow aimed. He lowered it at the sight. Shane was hugging a brunette woman with her back to Daryl. Shane was sobbing and she was doing the same. Carl ran to her and she scooped him up.

"Hey there handsome!" she exclaimed and Lori stepped forward. "I don't think I've ever been so happy to see you Lori!" Lori raised her hands to wipe her face and they gave each other a short but friendly hug.

"So Glenn told you to come here?" Dale asked.

"Yes he came into the store that I was living in and he told me that you needed a doctor, so here I am!" she said wiping her face. Dale looked behind her while Jim talked to the new girl. Shane looked behind as well and smirked.

"Hey son! Why don't you say hello to the new girl or I should say new doctor!" Dale said.

"Go on, don't be shy!" Shane told the doctor and pushed her backwards. She stumbled back but caught her footing. She was wearing a white v-neck, dark blue skinny jeans, and black high tops.

"You're so rude sometimes!" she told Shane and she finally turned around. Daryl dropped his crossbow to the ground. The group except Shane, Lori, and Carl gave each other confused looks. She started to laugh and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Brooke?" he asked and started to jog towards her that soon turned into a full sprint. "Brooke!" he yelled and crashed into her. He held on to her not wanting to let go. "You're alive? I thought that…you…Oh my God!" he stammered and held her closer.

"I should've known that a Dixon would survive this!" she joked. They let go of each other and just looked at the other. They both laughed in pure happiness that they had found each other. While everyone who didn't know their back story was confused, Jim and Dale smiled that they had seen a new side of Daryl. Brooke walked back over to the group.

"Sorry, that was rude." She said.

"It's okay, we understand!' Dale said. "Why don't we all sit down and take a breather." The group sat down in the circle they usually sat in. "So what were you doing before all of this Dr. Walsh?"

"Please, just call me Brooke." She smiled. "I was at a medical convention in Atlanta but I left a day early, or just in time. I heard about the outbreak on the radio so I went back to my house. I got everything I could pack in my blue Prius over there and left. Oh crap! Rudy!" she called and a German Sheppard came from behind the car.

"You brought your damn mutt with ya?" Daryl asked.

"For the millionth time he isn't a mutt, Daryl Dixon!" she chuckled and rubbed Rudy's head. Carl cheered and ran over to Rudy. "Anyways, the town was being overrun and I called SOME people and told them to go to our beach house." She gave pointed looks to Daryl, Shane, and Lori. "I stopped at a store and we lived there for I don't know how long. I'm just glad to have my boys!" Carl looked up and smiled at her and went back to hugging Rudy.

"May I pet your dog?" Sophia asked.

"Of course! He's very sweet." Sophia looked at her mother and she nodded. Sophia crawled to the dog and petted him.

"Do you have any sort of weapons?" Shane asked.

"I have a pistol, a shotgun, and a bow and arrow." People gave her some weird looks.

"My grandfather was an Olympic archer so he taught me how to use it." She said. She walked to her car and pulled out her weapons. She latched an arrow to the string, aimed it, pulled it back, and fired it. It flew above Daryl's head and impaled a squirrel. People gave her impressed looks and she smugly grinned.

"So you're a Doctor and a master archer?" Amy smiled. "So you can hunt for us as well?"

"You're like Katniss!" Sophia enthused.

"Yeah! I love hunting!" she said. "Hopefully I'll catch more than squirrel." She said. Do any of you women hunt?" they all answered no.

"I can fish." Amy said.

"I've always wanted to learn how to fish." Brooke said. "So what all do the women do around here."

"We clean, cook, and do the laundry." Lori informed. Brooke acknowledged but Daryl knew she was unimpressed. Brooke had always been independent and didn't believe in becoming Susie homemaker for whomever she married.

"Yeah I can hunt and I can help with that stuff too." Brooke said trying not to sound too repelled by the idea. Daryl smirked at her.

"Don't forget that you're the doctor now." Jim said. Brooke laughed. Oh how much Daryl missed hearing that.

"Don't worry, Jim?" she asked and Jim nodded. "Jim. Don't worry I'll be your personal hospital." She looked down at Carl. "How have you been, handsome?"

"Fine! Shane's been teaching me all this new stuff! Can you teach me how to shoot that arrow?" Brooke looked at Lori who had a look of "I smell something weird".

"Maybe, I'll have to see." She said and ruffled his hair. Daryl saw the charm bracelet on her right arm and sighed. She was wearing necklace with one of the stars on it and her mother's cross pendant. "It might be easier to shoot a crossbow though." She said and looked at Daryl who just shrugged. They heard the radio and the first message was a man asking if anyone was there. Amy ran and answered but they lost their connection.

"We need to out a sign." Lori said. "People don't know what they're getting into."

"We don't have time Lori." Shane asked. "Besides I don't want you wandering off the camp." Lori rolled her eyes and stormed off.

"Typical Lori." Brooke thought. "Doesn't get her way and she throws a tantrum. I swear Carl's more mature than her." She stopped her thinking and pulled Shane away from Carl. "Where's Rick?" Shane sighed and ran his hand through his hair. She knew that wasn't good.

"I went to the hospital when this whole thing broke loose. I ran into his room and I tried but he wouldn't wake up from the coma. They turned off the power and the machines turned off. I couldn't get a heartbeat. I made sure none of those walkers-"

"Walkers?" she asked.

"That's what we call the rotting freaks." He explained. "I put a bed in front of his door and made sure I parked it. I got Lori and Carl and this is as far as I got." He said. "We ran into the Dixon's and the rest of the people. We sent a small group to Atlanta."

"Wait Dixons?" she asked. "Merle was here?" Shane nodded. "Great! Now I go back to being lil' bit and sugar-tits." Shane laughed and side-hugged her. "So Rick's really gone?" he nodded again. She bit back tears. Shane gave her a brotherly kiss on the cheek and they walked back towards the camp. They heard the radio again and Shane ran to pick it up.

"This is T-Dog!" the man said.

"T-Dog report!" Shane demanded.

"City… overrun…stuck…store… roof." It went dead. Amy had a look of horror on her face.

"We have to go after them!" she said.

"We can't Amy, it's too dangerous." He said.

"But they volunteered! Their risking their lives! She's risking her life!" she replied.

"Amy, we can't." he said firmly.

"She's my sister you son of a bitch." She said and walked away. Brooke couldn't help but feel bad for the poor girl. She could understand why she was mad.

"I'm gonna go check on Lori." He said to Brooke.

"You go do that." She said. Five minutes later Carl ran up to her with Rudy. "What's up handsome?"

"Where's Mom?" Carl asked.

"She may be in her tent. Come on lets go look and see." She said. They walked over to the tent but as they got closer she made Carl stay behind. She snuck up closer to the tent and saw Lori and Shane. Not just Lori and Shane but she SAW Lori and Shane. She gasped and ran away and pushed Carl with her.

"What's going on?" Carl asked clueless of the situation.

"They're just talking about some serious stuff." She explained. "Or I will once I get him alone." She thought. She almost had to slap herself in order for her to forget what she just saw. It took all of her might to not throw up on Carl. "Hey why don't you go play with Sophia? She looks lonely." Carl nodded and ran to play with Sophia. Rudy stayed with Brooke and she secretly got even angrier with Lori and Shane. She made sure no one was around her and she finally said her peace to Rudy. "She couldn't have closed her legs for respect of the dead?" she asked him and he just cocked his head to the side. "Sometimes I really wish you were a Disney animal." She walked out and went to get to know her knew roommates. Daryl hadn't seen her that angry since Merle actually made a move on Becky.

_Brooke and Amber where 21, Becky was 23, Daryl was 24, and Merle was 29. Brooke and Amber were on break from getting their masters and they decided to catch up with Becky. They went to their favorite bar where it was Karaoke night. The girls sang a song and sat down to catch up. Merle walked into the bar and saw Becky. Becky was a hell of a lot more drunk than the other two. The other two had just had one beer each and would both make sure that Becky would be safe. Becky got up while the other two chatted and giggled. _

_ "Merle?" she asked and gave him a hug. "Hey man, how are you?" she asked loudly._

_ "I'm good how 'bout you Becky?" he asked._

_ "I've never, hmph, felt better!" she hiccupped and he chuckled. They had small idle chit-chat for about five more minutes. "Ya know, I always thought you were kinda cute, Dixon!" she tried to whisper._

_ "Oh Really?" he asked and she nodded sloppily. "You wanna get outta here?"_

_ "Hell yah!" she said and she got on the back of his motorcycle. Amber and Brooke were still in the bar applauding a young woman on her performance on Summer Nights with her boyfriend._

_ "Where's Becky?" Brooke asked. _

_ "She said she was just going to the bathroom." Amber replied and they walked to the bathroom and no one was in the bathroom. "Where the hell is she? She took her purse with her, but then again she never leaves her purse alone anymore." Becky had recently gotten robbed in Atlanta and got her purse stolen._

_ "Hey Pete!" Brooke called the bartender._

_ "What's up little Walsh?" he asked and Brooke rolled her eyes._

_ "Have you seen Becky?"she asked_

_ "Yeah she left not too long ago." He replied. "With some bald guy." The girls thought for a moment but had the worst possible thing come to their heads._

_ "No…" Amber trailed off._

_ "She's not that drunk, right?" Brooke asked her._

_ "Little Walsh she was DRUNK!" Amber shrieked in horror._

_ "Was this guy tall, country as all get out, broad shoulders and chest?"_

_ "Yep, yep, and affirmative." Peter said._

_ "Bye Peter!" Brooke yelled, Amber grabbed their things and they ran out the door. They got into the red Beetle and drove to the Dixon house. They saw Daryl in the drive way. Daryl turned and saw that both girls were as pale as ghosts._

_ "What's going on?" he asked._

_ "How long have you been here?" Amber asked/_

_ "I just got off the late shift." He explained._

_ "Please open the door!" Brooke begged. He did as he was told and opened the front door. "Where's Merle's room?" He led them down the hallway but they slowed down as soon as they realized what was going on. Amber and Brooke knew they were way too late. Amber held her mouth closed and ran outside. Brooke and Daryl followed to see if she was okay._

_ "I'm fine!" she said. "I just needed some air."_

_ "I'm going to kill Merle!" Brooke cursed. Daryl held her shoulders._

_ "Oh no you're not!" he said. "Did she go willingly?" Brooke ran her hand through her hair and nodded. "Then you shouldn't kill either of 'em. They're adults; they can make their own decisions." The next day Becky met the rest of the girls at the park. Her hair was messy and her cheeks were red._

_ "Hey Becky!" They greeted. _

_ "You have fun last night?" Brooke asked. Becky just groaned in embarrassment._

_ "I am so sorry." Becky said and started crying. Amber gave Brooke a panicked look._

_ "What's wrong?" Amber asked._

_ "He lied to me!" Becky said. "He told me he cared about me and that I was a great person. Then he just goes away like I'm some stupid one night stand!" Brooke grew with rage. _

_ "Come on honey, let's go get some coffee." Brooke said calmly. They walked to the café but Brooke saw Merle and some of his friends at the end of the street. Brooke nodded for Amber to continue. She walked confidently to Merle._

_ "Well hey there sugar-tits!" he greeted._

_ "Alright you piece of shit you listen to me!" she yelled. "I told you six years ago not to touch me or my girls. Now you make one of them feel like a worthless piece of trash because of your lies! I've had it and if you come near her again I'll make sure you go home cryin'! You mess with Becky, you mess with me! And oh boy, you do not want to mess with me!"_

_ "Sounds like your jealous sugar-tits?" Merle laughed and so did his friends. Brooke kicked him, with her pointed toe boots in the groin. He yelped and fell to the ground. _

_ "That goes for all of you!" she warned. She smoothed out her white trench coat and walked back to the café where Daryl was having his usual. She went over to Becky and told her the plan._

_ "Daryl, we need a favor." The next day Merle and Daryl walked into the café where the girls were working for the day. They ordered to peppermint teas and the girls got their plan going. Amber got a mortar and pestle and Brooke handed her the materials while Becky got the order ready. "Alright Amber remember. Blue is Merle's and the red is Daryl's." Amber nodded and got the order right. Merle immediately drank from his cup and the girl silently celebrated. Daryl walked over to the counter to pay._

_ "We ain't leavin'. I'm jus' payin'. What did you put in his coffee?" Brooke slid a box towards him. He had to hold his hand to his mouth to keep from laughing. "You crushed up Viagra?"_

_ "Just two pills." Brooke evilly smirked. "Let's just sit and watch sweet revenge take place. This should teach him not to mess with my girls." They looked over and saw Merle's eyes widen. Becky hysterically laughed but pretended that Amber told her something funny. "Ah revenge, thou art a heartless bitch." Brooke smiled and Daryl congratulated her on her successful evil plan._

Daryl was interrupted by Dale.

"So how do you know the doctor?" he asked.

"Nothin' that concerns you ol' man." Daryl said and walked off. Dale wasn't willing to let this one go. Later on at night people were chilling around the campfire after dinner. Brooke walked out with her bag on her shoulders and blushed.

"I guess we don't chill in our pajamas around here huh?" she asked embarrassedly. She was wearing some PJ short that were brown with multi colored polka dots and a hot pink, light, sweatshirt that went off on one shoulder. The group chuckled at her and Daryl nudged her. She smiled nervously and turned around to go back and change. The group carried on with their conversations.

"Where ya goin'?" Daryl asked.

"I'm going to go change. I feel awkward and it's freaking freezing! My legs will be numb by the time I go to bed." Daryl pulled on her arm and she squeaked. She landed next to him, her legs went up and over his, he put his arms around her legs, and huddled them closer to his chest.

"I'll keep 'em warm. Just relax there's no use to change again." He said. She shrugged and laid down on the log they were sitting on. Dale looked over and smiled at the two. Now was his chance.

"So Brooke?" he asked and she turned her head to face him.

"Well hi there Dale!" she smiled. "What's up?"

"How do you and Daryl know each other?" he asked.

"You know I've been wondering that myself." Amy confessed and the others agreed.

"We've been best friends for…" she thought for a moment. "Eleven years now." Dale nodded and smiled.

"You also seem pretty young to be a doctor." Jim added.

"I graduated high school when I was sixteen and I've only been a doctor for almost a year now." She said again and yawned. "Shane, where am I sleeping tonight?"

"Oh man I haven't even thought about that." He said. "I don't have any more room in my tent I share with Lori and Carl."

"Of course you share." She grumbled but only Daryl could hear her.

"I don't think we have anymore more room." He sighed.

"That's okay I can sleep out here." She said.

"No, you'll freeze ta death!" Daryl said. "You can share my tent until Merle comes back."

"Rudy's coming in too." She said and leapt up. She gave Shane a kiss on the cheek and said goodnight. An hour later, Daryl was ready to go to sleep and found the dog in Merle's bed. Brook had fallen asleep in his. She had the covers on but she was shivering. Daryl stripped to his boxers and climbed in next to her. She was on the outside while he was closer to the wall. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her a little closer. She whined in her sleep from being moved but soon went back to her peaceful rest. She was there and safe. Daryl was afraid it was all a dream and almost didn't want to go to sleep in fear that he'd wake up and she'd be gone. He knew it was real. She was there with him again and nothing could change that.


	9. Chapter 9: Kids

Chapter 9: Kids

Brooke woke up in Daryl's arms and smiled. It was kind of hard to move her cheek because Daryl's was right on it. She shook her head and he snorted awake. She moved her head into the pillow and laughed into it so she wouldn't wake up the others in the camp.

"You're awful, you know that?" he rubbed his eyes. She turned to face him and her face was red from the laughter.

"I'm sorry but that was too funny!" she said quietly. "Good morning!"

"Good morning!" he said acting a little annoyed. He reached up and brushed the hair that was blocking her face behind her ear. Rudy came up behind them with a little container in his mouth. "Give me that you mutt!" he grabbed it and opened the container. "Breakfast?" he asked.

"Where did you find these?" she asked.

"Just out in the woods." He replied but she had a worried look on her face. "Don't worry Mrs. Germaphobe I washed them." She sat up next to him and grabbed one.

"There still good!" she said with a bite still in her mouth. "Take one." He grabbed one and bit into it. It didn't take them long to finish their breakfast and they got dressed. Brooke wore a turquoise tank top, another pair of dark skinny jeans, and some lace up combat boots. Daryl wore his usual sleeveless, flannel shirt, jeans, and light brown boots. They walked out and Lori, Amy, and Carol were washing the dishes. Rudy trotted out to Carl and pulled Brooke with him. Sophia and the Morales kids joined them. They started to play tag and Brooke was it. She quickly scooped up the twelve year old and swung him around. "Your it!"

"Alright kids, Brooke, that's enough." Lori said. The kids, and Brooke, gave her a disappointed look. "I need to give you a haircut."

"Aw come on Mom!" Carl pouted but walked towards her. Shane was sitting in a chair checking his gun and Lori started to cut his dark brown hair.

"Don't worry little man! How about after this we go catch some frogs?" he asked and Brooke's ears pricked up.

"What?" Carl asked and Lori pushed his head down. "That sounds kinda gross."

"It's so much fun!" Brooke enthused.

"You caught frogs?" he asked.

"All the time with Shane and, uh, his friend." Brooke said. She tried to not use Rick's name for the sake of Carl. "I did a lot better than they did. They barely caught two every time we went. Shane's never beat my record of twenty frogs." She smugly grinned.

"If we catch any we can cook 'em!" Shane said and rubbed his stomach.

"Ew, frog legs?" Lori asked snobbishly. Brooke rolled her eyes. In this time they couldn't but twenty dollar steaks anymore like Lori used to have even though they didn't have that much money.

"When you get down to that last can of beans, you're gonna' lovin' those frogs legs lady, I can see it now." Shane said. "_Shane do you think I could have a second serving, please? Please? Just one?" _He imitated Lori.

"Yeah I doubt that." Lori scoffed.

"Don't listen to her, little man. You and me will be heroes and feed everyone! We'll be cookin' Cajun-style Kermit legs!"

"Yeah you've seen everything about that lady. She probably begs like that every night." Brooke thought but kept to herself. "Don't worry Grimes, they taste just like chicken." She smiled at the two. "Shane, don't mention Cajun food! You know that's my weakness!" She playfully pushed Shane's head to the side.

"Can I go with Shane, Mom?" Carl asked.

"After your hair-cut." She replied and he sat still. Eliza Morales and Sophia came to Brooke. Eliza had two dolls in her hand while Sophia only had one.

"Ms. Brooke will you play with us?" Eliza asked and held out a blonde haired rag doll.

"I would love to Eliza!" she replied and took the doll. "Call me when y'all go catchin' frogs okay, I may just join y'all." Shane nodded and continued working on his gun. She walked over with the kids to a table and played doll house for about thirty minutes. Daryl was getting ready to go hunting and saw her. Brooke was always great with kids. Whether it was Carl or one of her friend's kids. He continued to go hunting. He remembered when he helped her look after Carl when he was six.

_Brooke was 20 and Daryl was 23. She was back in King County for Christmas break from getting her doctorate. Lori and Rick wanted to have a date night and Shane was too busy working. Daryl had met Brooke and Carl in town and Brooke was driving them to some place out of town. He had helped Brooke babysit Carl before but this time was different. They weren't just staying at home; they were going to the Santa's village near by King County. Rick said they would meet there after about an hour or so of them arriving at the village at seven. Merle had just gotten back from serving another tour in the military and Daryl didn't know what he was doing. He just hoped he would be back in time for them to go visit their Meemaw for Christmas. It was two days before Christmas and Carl was about to jump out of Brooke's new Prius. She had to get a new one since someone rammed into her car while it was parked. Damn drunk driver! No one was hurt, just the car._

_ "Are we there yet?" Carl asked. Brooke laughed but Daryl was annoyed. That was the tenth time he'd asked that question._

_ "Just five more minutes, handsome!" she said and turned up the Christmas tunes to hopefully shut him up. Carl sat impatiently with his hands to the window trying to see if Santa's village was close. She turned her car into the parking lot and Carl unbuckled himself. "Alright here we are!" Carl cheered gleefully and got out of the car. It was a white Christmas for the first time in years and it was flurrying at the moment. It was probably 30 degrees outside but they were all bundled up. Brooke wore a red pea coat over her black turtle neck, some black leather boots, skinny jeans, which was her favorite thing to wear, a black knit cap, and a pair of black gloves. Brooke was still her natural light tan color but her cheeks were red from the cold. Carl was in a dark blue, puffy jacket, a red scarf ,hat, and gloves with a white reindeer design on them, jeans, and some tennis shoes. Daryl was wearing some Jeans, a long sleeved blue t-shirt, a black coat, some work boots jeans, and gray gloves and knit cap. Carl held her hand and they walked into the village. Christmas music was playing in the background and they had every souvenir shop known to man. Along with some kiddy rides and some actual reindeer._

_ "Daryl?" Carl asked._

_ "Yeah kid?" he asked._

_ "Why are the reindeer here? Shouldn't they be in the North Pole to be with Santa?" he asked innocently. He smirked and saw Brooke smiling._

_ "They're just here to help Santa plan his way across the world. They're just resting a bit and meeting all the kids on the nice list." Daryl replied. _

_ "Come on! We gotta go see them before they leave!" Carl said and pulled the two of them to go see the reindeer. They petted the reindeer. Santa wasn't there which was easily explained by the all knowing Daryl. Good thing that Lori had already taken him to the mall to see Santa. Brooke bought him a stuffed reindeer and a silver bell._

_ "Why'd you buy the kid a bell?" He asked holding Carl's hand. Carl had complained that his hands were cold so Brooke took is left and Daryl took his right. They would lift him over the icy spots and he would laugh with glee. They lifted him up and over another spot and he laughed._

_ "Have you ever watched It's a Wonderful Life?" she asked._

_ "No I've only watched those little clay figures on the TV." He replied._

_ "That's my favorite Christmas movie! I'm making you watch it when we get home." She said and he chuckled. "Well in the movie they say that every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings."_

_ "Can we have a snowball fight over there Aunt Brooke?" Carl asked._

_ "Alright handsome!" she said and again he pulled them over to a little area. Carl wanted Daryl to be on his team so they could gang up on her. They were beating her at first but then Daryl decided to have a little fun with Carl. He formed a snow ball and threw it a Carl._

_ "Hey we're on the same team!" Carl said and Daryl threw another one at him. "You traitor!" Carl smiled and threw some at him. Brooke decided to help out and attacked Carl with snow. Carl focused on her._

_ "Daryl, help me!" She giggled as she was being pelted with snowballs._

_ "I'm comin' my lady!" Daryl yelled and ran to protect her from the mighty Carl."He's too strong for us we must surrender!" he said. _

_ "Oh, powerful Carl we beg for your mercy!" Brooke said._

_ "Does this mean I win?" he asked stopping with his fire._

_ "Yes!" Brooke said. "You are the champion of snowball fights!" Carl cheered and tackled the two to the ground. _

_ "Can we go get something to eat now?" Carl asked making the two adults laugh. They got up and dusted themselves off._

_ "I'm so freaking cold!" Brooke whispered._

_ "Come here!' Daryl smiled. "I need some warmth too ya know." He threw his arms around her to hopefully warm up. Brooke saw Carl shivering._

_ "You need a lift, handsome?" she asked and Carl nodded. Brooke knew that Carl was a lot bigger than he used to be when he was three._

_ "Come here Carl." Daryl said and lifted him up so he could hold him up on his side. Carl hung on to Daryl's shoulders and Daryl had one arm around Carl and one arm around Brooke. They walked into one of the shops._

_ "Oh look here! We have another happy family!" A photographer for the local newspaper said._

_ "Oh no, we're not-" Daryl began._

_ "Smile!" the photographer said and they did as they were told. Daryl thought and they did kind of look like a family. Daryl bought them each some warm gingerbread men, a gingerbread woman for Brooke and they walked out of the store. It was eight thirty by the time Lori and Rick had finally shown up. Brooke and Daryl were still drinking their hot cocoa while Carl had fallen asleep on Daryl's shoulder after he finished his small cup. Brooke and Daryl joked about how Carl went to sleep right after he had a full dose of sugar. They were walking towards the exit when they saw them. _

_ "Hey guys!" Brooke whispered so she didn't wake up Carl._

_ "Hey Brooke! Hey Daryl!" Rick replied. "Any problems?"_

_ "No he was fine!" Daryl whispered. "No problems. He's a great kid."_

_ "Thanks for looking after him." Lori said. Rick tried to take Carl away but Carl snuggled into Daryl more. Brooke snickered as they continued this game for a little bit longer._

_ "Come on kid, you need to go home." Daryl whispered to Carl._

_ "I don't wanna." Carl mumbled._

_ "I promise we'll hang out again." Daryl persuaded. "Just you, Brooke, and me." Carl liked the promise and went to his dad. Lori smiled and gave them both an awkward hug. Rick thanked the two and gave Brooke a quick kiss on the cheek He shook Daryl's hand and they went to their car while Daryl and Brooke did the same._

_ "I'd say that Carl has grown to like you contrary to your beliefs." Brooke smiled. Her nose had gotten to be a bright red color. Daryl held her a little closer with both arms to warm her up and she did the same._

_ "Never thought that would happen." He confessed._

_ "Alright let's go watch that movie!" she said and hopped into her car. Daryl got into the passenger seat. "Do you think we'll see our picture in the paper?"_

_ "If we do it'll probably be labeled as a happy family." He smirked. "Merle would never let me live that down."_

_ "Neither would Shane." She laughed and started the car to warm it up. Daryl thought about that assumption of them being a family. _

Daryl also remembered the time only two years ago that Becky had her daughter Meghan.

_Brooke had just turned25 and Daryl was about to turn 28 in a couple of days. Daryl had just gotten home from a little get together with Brooke since she was home for a visit. They ran into Becky who was heavily pregnant with her husband Mitch who was a high school biology teacher. Becky had taken over the boutique and got married to Mitch after a year of dating. Now a year later she was about to have a kid. Daryl laid down on his bed and went to sleep. It was two in the morning when his home phone went off. Merle yelled for him to answer it. He'd recently moved back in since he couldn't pay his rent. He couldn't keep a job and Daryl knew he would have to support him._

_ "Hello?" Daryl groaned._

_ "Daryl?" Brooke asked._

_ "Brooke, it's two o'clock in the damn morning! What in hell is so important that you call me at two o'clock in the damn morning?" he snapped._

_ "Becky is in labor!" she huffed. "She wants us to be there along with Amber!"_

_ "On my way!" Daryl said and hung up the phone. He got dressed fairly quickly and was pulling on his boots as he opened the door._

_ "Where you goin' little brother?" Merle asked with a headache from his hangover._

_ "Becky's in labor and she wants me to be there with Amber and Brooke." He said and ran to his car. He got there at around 2:30 and Brooke was apparently surviving on coffee. Becky's parents were out of town and so were Mitch's. "How is she?"_

_ "She's fully dilated and she should have the baby pretty soon." Amber yawned. They were outside her room and Amber caught up with Daryl. Amber was busy studying to be a veterinarian and she even met a boy at school that she was actually crazy about. They heard a cry coming from the delivery room and they all lit up. Mitch walked out smiling._

_ "Becky's okay and so is Meghan." He said. They all jumped from their chairs and congratulated them._

_ "What's her full name?" Brooke smiled._

_ "Meghan Marie Tomlinson." He replied. "She's perfect. Alright I'm gonna go back and check on Becky."_

_ "We have our own dress up doll now!" Amber said. "I bought something that I was going to give her later." She pulled out a frilly pink dress for Meghan._

_ "Y'all are goin' to torture that kid." Daryl smiled. "Watch her be a tom boy."_

_ "I think we'll buy her so much frilly, pretty, sparkly things she'll have no choice!" Brooke laughed and held up the dress. "I got her something too!" she pulled out little sparkly red shoes. "The Wizard of Oz is Becky's favorite movie."_

_ "They're perfect!" Amber awed and handed them to Daryl he looked at the tiny little shoes that weren't bigger than the palm of his hand._

_ "These are pretty cute." He admitted quietly. A nurse walked out._

_ "Meghan's in the nursery if you want to go look at her." The trio left and went to the window._

_ "Which one is she?" he asked. Brooke looked around and finally spotted her._

_ "There she is. The one in the middle." She said softly. "She's so cute and chubby!" she enthused. _

_ "She's perfect." Daryl said. "She has those dark blue eyes and Becky's blonde hair."_

_ "I bet the blue eyes came from her Grandmother." Amber said. "Look she's yawning!" Brooke giggled and Daryl smirked. "She's the cutest thing ever!" A couple of hours later Becky woke up from her nap and held Meghan in her arms. The three walked in and each gave Becky a kiss on the cheek._

_ "How do you feel?" Daryl asked._

_ "I feel fine." Becky replied. "Thank you for coming." They all replied "our pleasure". Amber held Meghan for a little bit but had to leave because she had a class the next morning. Brooke held the baby for a little while but soon edged Daryl to hold her._

_ "Come on, you've waited this long." Daryl warily held out his arms and Meghan was placed in his arms. The baby shuffled a bit and made a cute little noise that made him snicker. Her arms reached up and down. "You want to see something?" Brooke asked._

_ "Sure."_

_ "Alright." She gently held up Meghan's arm. "Hold out your index finger and place it right here." She pointed to the middle of the baby's forearm. "Now gently lift it to the palm of her hand." He followed the instructions and Meghan's fingers locked around his finger. He smiled._

_ "She's pretty strong for a girl." He joked knowing Brooke wouldn't do anything because of the baby. Mitch walked in with some coffee._

_ "Did you ask them yet?" he asked Becky. _

_ "I was waiting for you." She replied._

_ "Ask us what?" Daryl asked. Becky and Mitch looked at each other and held hands._

_ "We want to ask you if you two would be her godparents." Becky smiled. Brooke's eyes widened and so did Daryl's. Brooke was more cheerful than shocked while Daryl was more shocked than cheerful. Someone wanted him to be a godfather?_

_ "Really?" Brooke asked quietly. Mitch nodded._

_ "We know you two will be a good influence on her. She won't call you godfather or godmother but you two will be Aunt Brooke and Uncle Daryl. That is if you want to be of course."_

_ "I would love to be a godmother!" Brooke said and gave Mitch a hug. Becky looked at Daryl._

_ "How could I possible say no, Becky?" he chuckled and gave her Meghan and a kiss on the cheek. Daryl and Brooke thought it was safe to leave the hospital and go home. "I can't believe Becky's a mom." _

_ "Me neither! It seems like only yesterday we were in science class." Brooke reminisced. "Well now we're godparents."_

_ "I'm still trying to get used to that." He said. "Come on Godmomma, I'll buy you some good coffee."_

_ "That sounds great Godpoppa." She said. Daryl and Brooke would look after Meghan when the parents were too busy. Some people would look at them and smile. People at the ice cream place would comment on what a beautiful daughter they had. Daryl couldn't help but think about it sometimes. What it would be like to have a family of his own. What it would be like to date Brooke, marry her, raise a family with her, and grow old with her. To be honest, it just felt right to Daryl._

Daryl snapped out of it once again when he saw deer tracks.

"Finally, something other than squirrel."


	10. Chapter 10: Katniss

Hey everyone! Just another thank you for all the reads and reviews! It's been really great seeing feedback from you! Thanks again and as always, happy reading!

Chapter 10: Katniss

Brooke heard an alarm going off and ran away from the table.

"Dale! What the hell is that?" she asked with her ponytail flying behind her.

"Looks like somebody stole a Mustang." He replied. The mustang pulled up and Glenn stepped out of it.

"Hey guys!" he replied. Shane and Brooke ran to the car.

"You tryin' to attract every walker in Georgia?" Shane asked and was about to disarm the Mustang but Brooke had already beaten him to it. Shane smirked at her and patted her on the back. He had taught her well.

"Hey doc!" Glenn said.

"Hey pizza boy!" Brooke replied and gave him a hug. "This is my brother Shane!" she chuckled and Glenn looked confused.

"That's just freaky."

"You trying to get us all killed?" Dale asked.

"Sorry." Glenn said. "I got a cool car." Brooke chuckled a little bit. A white truck pulled up behind them and T-Dog, Morales, Jacqui, and Andrea stepped out. Loved ones embraced loved ones but Brooke saw Carl's face. He really missed his father.

"We never would've made it without the Sherriff. Hey helicopter guy, come say hello!" Morales said. A man in a sheriff's uniform and hat stepped out from the truck. Brook gasped and Shane's jaw dropped.

"Dad!" Carl yelled and ran to his father. Lori ran and joined the embrace. Rick stopped and looked up at Brooke.

"Little Walsh?" he asked. "Come here!" he hugged Brooke and she kissed his cheek.

"Rick Grimes! I thought you were dead!" Brooke wept. Shane just stood there amazed. He let go of Brooke and hugged Shane. Shane's face was still painted with shock. She looked over at Lori who gave Shane a cold gaze. That can't be good. Brooke met the rest of the people.

"My name's T-Dog." He said.

"What's your real name?" Brooke asked.

"Theodore."

"I'm going to call you Teddy because I can't take T-Dog seriously." She joked.

"Alright, I'm just gonna call you Little Walsh then." T-Dog said smiling.

"Deal." She said and the shook hands. She finally met Andrea, Morales, and Jacqui. She knew something was off. This wasn't all the people that went to Atlanta. She looked at Shane with a panicked look and he knew what was wrong.

"Wait, where's Merle?" Brooke asked. No one answered. "Shit."

"What, did you know Merle?" Glenn asked.

"Um, yeah. What happened to him?"

"I'll explain later." T-Dog said. Later at dinner Rick cuddled with his family and Shane had his arm over Brooke.

"Shane, I can't thank you enough for saving my family." Rick said.

"No problem man!" Shane said. "I thought that you were… never mind." Shane said and looked down. "So what happened to Merle?"

"He was a danger to us all." T-Dog said. "He would attract walkers and he would attack all of us. He attacked me and called me a nigger."

"Sounds like Merle." Brooke said.

"I had to handcuff him to pipe." Rick said. "Walkers broke into the store and we got out."

"I tried to uncuff him but I dropped the key down a drain." T-Dog explained. "I locked the door with a padlock that ten walkers couldn't break." Brooke shook her head.

"This is going to be a mess." She said and ran a hand through her hand.

"What did Merle mean to you?" Glenn asked.

"He's my best friend's brother." Brooke said.

"So you know Daryl?"

"For a long time now." Brooke said. "I don't know how he'll take the news." Everyone looked to her. They knew she could be the only one to tell him without him getting angry. "You've got to be kidding me guys! I can't tell Daryl, no matter who tells him he'll be pissed!" she saw T-Dogs eyes and looked at everyone else's. They were desperate for Daryl not to lose it. "I'll try."

"Where is he now?" T-Dog asked.

"He's out hunting." She replied. The next day Brooke was out with Carl in the woods. She wore the same thing she wore the day before since she didn't get dirty or sweat that much.

"Hey Aunt Brooke look at this!" Carl said and picked up an arrow. "Can I keep it?"

"I don't think your mom would appreciate that too much, handsome." They continued walking but Carl screamed. In front of them was a walker eating a deer with arrows in it. It looked up at Carl.

"Carl run! Go get someone!" Brooke warned. She was about to fire her arrow when Glenn came and beat it to death and Dale decapitated it.

"You okay?" Glenn asked.

"Yeah Glenn I'm fine." She said lowering her bow. Amy and Andrea came in later. They heard the bushes rustle and Brooke drew her bow and arrow.

"Son of a bitch! That's my deer!" Brooke sighed. She had to tell him today? Great, he's already pissed. "Look at it! All gnawed on by this filthy, disease-bearing, motherless poxy bastard!" he said kicking it four times. Brooke fired an arrow to the right and they heard a thump. They all looked at her. She shot down a wild hog.

"Good job Katniss!" Glenn said.

_"Katniss? Who the hell is Katniss?"_ Daryl thought. Brooke laughed and walked over to the hog. She bent down to pick it up and he saw Glenn checking her out. Glenn lifted his eyebrows, smiled and looked away. Daryl wanted to say something about it. He wanted to say to "leave my woman alone!" but he couldn't because he knew she could handle it. He knew that Brooke would never go for Glenn; the kid was too young for her.

"Bacon anyone?" she asked dragging the hog over.

"Do you think we can still keep the deer?" Daryl asked. "Maybe if we just cut around the bitten part?"

"Wouldn't chance it Daryl." Shane replied. Daryl rolled his eyes. Brooke began to try and pick up the hog but Glenn stopped her.

"I'll get it Brooke." Glenn said. He tried to pick it up but it wouldn't budge. He tried to drag it and got the same fate. Daryl smirked and Jim openly laughed. They heard a snapping in the background. They looked over and the head the Dale decapitated was alive.

"Oh God…" Amy said.

"Come on people, what the hell?" Daryl said and shot an arrow through its head. "It's gotta be the brain." He said and smacked Brooke's arm as he walked past her. Shane and Rick picked up the hog and took it to camp. "Merle? Got some squirrel!" he yelled. Everyone, except him, looked over at Brooke who ran her hand through her hair.

"Daryl, I need to tell you something." She said calmly.

"What's up?" he asked with the squirrel corpses in his hand tied to something at the top.

_"I'm gonna be tied up there after this." _She thought and gulped.

"Merle didn't make it back." She said calmly. She could see something snap in Daryl. "Daryl?"

"Is he alive?" he said a bit louder.

"We don't know." Rick said.

"Rick Grimes." Daryl profiled. "He's either alive or he ain't!"

"He's handcuffed to a pipe on the roof of the store." Rick said. "Then we got attacked and we left him up there."

"I tried to set him free, but I dropped the damn key down the drain." T-Dog added. "I locked the door with a lock strong enough that ten walkers at the least couldn't get through." Daryl officially snapped. He threw the corpses at Rick. Brooke went into motion before he could kill Rick. She tackled him down, put his head to the ground, and locked his arms behind him.

"Told you it wasn't gonna go well no matter who told him." She said as he struggled to break free. He suddenly pushed her off and she landed on her back. Hard. She winced in pain but soon got up. Shane had already put him in a headlock. Rudy had come over once he threw Brooke back and was ready to pounce on Daryl.

"Heel, Rudy!" she yelled and Rudy obeyed. He still was in a pouncing position with his teeth bared. Rick explained that they would go after him. Lori, of course, dropped her head down. Brooke knew that Rick was a man of honor and wants to keep that. It was one of those things about him that made him one of the most respected men in Brooke's book.

"Are you okay?" Jim asked pulling her up.

"Yeah." She shrugged. "Nothing I can't handle." They let Daryl go and he stormed off to his tent. He sent Brooke a look and she nodded. It was his apology and he had sent he that look many times. Rudy walked over to Brooke and whined. "I'm okay buddy." She patted his head. Shane walked over to her.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked.

"No, I'm fine." She said. "I'm coming to Atlanta by the way."

"No you're not." Shane said.

"I didn't ask you." She said. "I need to do something productive around here beside cleaning and cooking." Shane sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Rick had heard and walked over to them.

"I don't think you should go either, Little Walsh." He said. "Merle's very dangerous and I don't know what he'll do to you."

"I've handled Merle like that before and besides he owes me one. If he knows what's best for him he won't touch me." She said.

"I'll go handle that hog you killed earlier." Shane said and gave her a kiss on the cheek. She made Rudy go sit with Carl as he sat in fear. Rudy nuzzled him and became a nice dog again. She walked into Daryl's tent where he was just sitting there. He stood up and warily gave her a hug.

"I'm so sorry." He said. "I never meant to try and hurt you. I was just so angry at them."

"One, you didn't hurt me. Two, I know you're angry and I understand." She said and kissed his cheek.

"Are you sure? You hit the ground pretty hard." He said holding her face so she would look at him.

"I didn't hit it _that_ hard." She replied.

"Enough for your mutt to try and attack me." He said. "Are you sure we're okay?"

"If we weren't okay I wouldn't be going to Atlanta now would I?" she admitted and started to walk away. Daryl grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to him.

"Brooke, I don't know if I want you to go." He said. "It's pretty dangerous out there."

"I'm going to tell you the same thing I told Shane. I didn't ask you. I have a bow and an arrow. I have a shot gun and an attack dog." She replied. Daryl knew he wouldn't be able to win this one. "Besides, I'm about to go crazy if I see one more woman with dish washing detergent instead of a gun." She joked and he chuckled. "I'll be safe, we'll be safe."

"Alright, just know that I don't necessarily like it." He said. She gave him another kiss on the cheek.

"I know." She said and walked out of the tent. Daryl walked out just in time to hear Rick and Shane talking.

"Why would you risk your life for a douche bag like Merle Dixon?" Shane asked.

"Hey choose your words wisely!" Daryl barked.

"Oh no I did, douche bag's what I meant." Shane said.

"Shane." Brooke said pointedly.

"Merle Dixon is a guy who wouldn't give you a glass of water if you were dyin' of thirst,

"What he would or wouldn't do doesn't interest me." Rick said. "I can't let a man die of thirst, and exposure. We left him like an animal caught in a trap, that's no way for anything to die, let alone a human being." Daryl honked on the horn.

"Come on let's go!" he yelled and Shane rolled his eyes. Brooke came around with her bow, quiver, and shot gun.

"You be careful, Brooke." Shane said and hugged her. Brooke looked at Lori who had a different look on her face. She had never seen a look of pure hatred coming from Lori before. It was pointed at Shane. She kissed his cheek.

"You too, watch your back." She replied. "Rudy!" he came with Carl. Carl ran into her arms.

"Be careful Aunt Brooke." He said with his voice cracking. It broke Brooke's heart.

"I will handsome." She said. "You and Shane catch some frogs for me." Carl smiled and nodded his head. She brought her voice down to a whisper. "No matter what your mom says, Shane is a good influence. You never stop being friends with him. Promise me, Carl."

"I promise Aunt Brooke." He said. Brooke knew that Shane would love Carl with or without Lori. Carl needed Shane when Rick wasn't there and Shane helped him through this tough time.

"Don't tell your mom about the promise." Carl nodded again. He had already said goodbye to Rick.

"Come on Little Walsh!" T-Dog said.

"Coming Teddy!" she fired back. She gave Carl and Shane one last kiss before leaving. Daryl helped her into the truck and gave her the front seat. They parked on some tracks and walked to the store. It had been cleared of walkers except for a few that Daryl took care of with his crossbow. Rudy started to sniff around and Brooke followed him. Rudy went up the stairs and she was about to go up. She felt a hand grab her arm.

"You're staying down here." Daryl said while the rest were checking the store. Brooke was about to protest. "I let you come here, just please stay down here and stay alert. If Merle is still up there I don't know what he'll try to do." She gave in and nodded. Rudy ran back downstairs and whined. The men ran upstairs while Rudy had found another clue. T-Dog broke open the padlock and they walked out on the roof. All that was left was a bloody handsaw, bloody handcuffs, and a severed hand. "NO!" Daryl yelled. "NO! NO!" he got quiet but let out a roar of rage and aimed his crossbow at T-Dog. Rick lifted his gun to his head.

"Daryl, don't make me. I can't tell her that I shot you." Daryl put down his crossbow. T-Dog gave him a bandana and he wrapped up the hand. Glenn got queasy as he put the hand in his backpack. They walked back downstairs. Brooke and Rudy were nowhere to be found.

"Brooke?" Glenn asked.

"Back here! Rudy found something." They walked into a room and the smell over powered them. "Merle managed to kill these things. He also managed to cauterize his wound, whatever happened to him."

"Man that had to hurt." Glenn said.

"Merle is the toughest son of a bitch I know. You feed him a hammer, he shits out nails." Daryl said. "He sawed off his own hand." He could see Brooke's face scrunch up a bit.

"Well, if he managed to kill these things with one hand, cauterize the wound, and escape. I'd give it about a 75% chance that he's surviving out here somewhere with the variable of who knows how many walkers there are out there." She said. Daryl started to leave but Rick stopped him.

"Get your hands off me! You can't stop me!" Daryl snapped.

"I understand that you want to save him. He's family and I should know. I've been through a hell of a lot to find mine. If we're going to search for Merle, we'll need those guns." Daryl grunted and stayed put.

"So Glenn?" Brooke asked.

"Yeah Katniss?"

"What's the plan?" she asked and they all went to an office to plan their route to the guns.


	11. Chapter 11: Up In a Tree

Chapter 11: Up In a Tree

The five were in an office and Glenn had just finished drawing the plan on the floor with an Expo marker.

"So that's it?" Rick asked.

"Trust me it'll work." Glenn said. "Brooke will be up high with her bow and arrow. Daryl and I will be on the ground with T-Dog and Rick. The dog will be with me and Brooke will be able to tell him what to do from where she is. It covers all angles."

"You got some balls for a china man." Daryl said.

"I'm Korean." Glenn said.

"Whatever." Daryl replied. They went out on the streets. Brooke went up high. Everything was going according to plan. Glenn ran out and grabbed the guns but they soon heard Daryl scream. Glenn ran back but was attacked by a gang.

"Rudy!" she yelled. "Sick 'em!" She flew down the ladder and Rudy attacked one of the men. Daryl shot another in the bottom with an arrow but it was too late. Rudy was kicked back and they shoved Glenn into a car. "Glenn!" she yelled and tried to run for the car but it was too late. "No!" she picked up the bag of guns and she saw Rick and T-Dog. Rudy slowly got up and went next to Brooke. Rick had his hat back which made her smirk. They heard a slam against the brick and saw Daryl beating up a teenage Mexican boy. He had a pot leaf tattoo on his arm and she could tell he was just a follower of the gang. They brought him up to the place where they were hiding out for a little bit.

"What do we do?" T-Dog asked. "He won't talk." Brooke had an idea and slyly smirked.

"What's the plan, Walsh?" Daryl asked.

"You still got that hand?" she asked and he nodded. The two walked over to Miguel.

"Where's Merle?" Daryl asked before being filled in on her plan.

"Merle? What kinda hick name is Merle? I wouldn't even name my dog that." He scoffed. Daryl was about to attack but Rick pulled him back. Brooke walked forward.

"Rudy!" She called hauntingly. Rudy slowly hunched over to Miguel. "Ready." She ordered. The dog went into his pouncing position and had his teeth showing very close to the boys face. He snarled and snapped. Rudy had a little blood in his fur around his mouth which added extra drama. Drool fell onto the boys shirt and he squirmed. T-Dog threw her the bandana. She opened it and threw the hand onto Miguel who cried and screamed. "You see that?" she asked. "That's what my dog did to a poor bastard back in a store in the city. I can only imagine what I'll make him do to you." As if on cue, Rudy snapped and barked even closer to Miguel's face. He broke down and told them everything. Daryl smirked and patted her on the back.

"Good job Brooke." He said. "We got him."

"So what do we do now?" she asked.

"Alright, T-Dog will take the Barrett .50 and sit on the other roof of another building. Brooke, you'll be up high with your bow and arrow with Rudy. We'll be on the ground with the kid." They all nodded and left. T-Dog and Brooke went on the roof. Brooke couldn't hear their conversation but she saw a man with a bag over his head on the roof of the building with someone behind him. They pulled off the bag and it was Glenn. She lifted her arrow to the man holding Glenn.

"Come on Rick, I can make the shot." She whispered. She looked down at the group and Rick told them to stand down. They walked back to their headquarters. "What do they want?"

"They want the guns." Rick answered. "Along with the punk."

"We should just take the guns and leave." Daryl said.

"No, he saved my life Daryl. If he hadn't told me to leave I would've never found y'all." Brooke said.

"He saved me from that tank. I need to return the favor and save him." Rick said. "We'll all be on the ground this time." They returned with Miguel gagged and his arms tied.

"That's the bitch how sent her dog on me!" A chubby gang member said.

"Wouldn't have sent him if you hadn't attacked us." She replied. Rick threw Miguel to his group.

"You have your man, I want mine." Rick said. "We keep the guns." The gang members pulled out their guns and aimed at them. The others did the same and Brooke ordered Rudy to get ready. His ears pricked up and he ran towards an old lady.

"Felipe?" she asked.

"Abuela, go back inside." He replied. She turned to Rick and patted Rudy who soon ran inside.

"Are you here to arrest him?" she asked.

"No m'am."

"They're here for the Asian." Filipe said.

"Very nice boy! He plays checkers very well." She turned to Filipe. "Daniel needs his medicine." Felipe sighed.

"I'm a doctor maybe I can help?" Brooke asked. "I want my dog back as well."

"I'll take you to him." The old lady said. They walked in and it turned out to be a nursing home. Glenn was standing there with Daniel.

"What's going on?" Brooke asked.

"He can't breathe." Glenn replied.

"Do you have asthma?" she asked and Daniel nodded. Brooke turned to the gang behind her. "Do you have his inhaler?"

"Here!" A man said. She thanked him and gave him the inhaler. He soon got his breathing back to normal.

"Man, we thought you were being eaten by vicious dogs!" T-Dog said. They heard Rudy bark and a small bark. They saw Rudy playing with three Chihuahua's.

"Some attack dogs." Daryl said.

"We were prepared to kill you!" Rick told Guillermo.

"So were we." He replied. "I was a janitor here and the staff took off. We came and took care of everyone. We'll do anything for guns and medicine." Rick pulled over Brooke.

"Do you think we should leave them with some stuff?" Rick asked.

"I do, they really care about these people. They have good hearts; they need some things to help them out. I put some medicine I brought in Glenn's bag and I could give them some."

"We'll give them some guns too." Rick said. They left them with some things and shook their hands.

"You be careful out there." Guillermo said to Brooke.

"You too. Take good care of them. What you're doing here is very remarkable; I don't know many people that would do that." She smiled and handed him another bottle of painkillers. He thanked her once again and they left to go to the truck.

"Admit it Rick, you only came back for the hat." Glenn chuckled. They got back to the tracks but the truck was gone. "Who would've taken it?"

"Merle." Brooke cursed. Daryl shook his head and Brooke kept walking on.

"Where you goin'?" Daryl asked.

"We got to get back someday! I'd rather be back there sooner rather than later." Brooke said. "Who knows what Merle will do after he gets back from the camp." She finally said and everyone ran after her to catch up. They got closer to the camp and heard screams. Rudy sprinted forward.

"That's not Merle!" Daryl yelled. Brooke gave him a confused look but soon realized what he meant. They finally got back to the camp. "Brooke, you stay behind me!" he told her. She saw Shane and Jim hitting walkers with baseball bats. She saw Ed as a walker. Amy got bit in the neck. The others fired their guns and weapons. After what seemed like an eternity it was over.

"Amy!" Andrea sobbed in a way that was blood curdling.

"Is that all of them?" Rick asked.

"Brooke?" Daryl asked. "Brooke!" An arrow was fired into the last walker that came up from behind Daryl. They looked around and saw arrows in a lot of the walker's heads. "Brooke, where the hell are you?"

"I'm up here!" she replied. They all looked up and saw her in a tree above the camp. "I could use some help!" Daryl ran and caught her when she let go of the branch she was hanging on too.

"I told you to stay behind me." He growled at her quietly so no one else could hear them.

"If I had, you would've been walker bait." She replied.

"Brooke!" Shane yelled and hugged her.

"I remember what my dream was about now." Jim said.


	12. Chapter 12: The Truth

Chapter 12: The Truth

It was dawn and Andrea was still holding a dead Amy in her arms just looking at her face. Lori went over to her and told her she needed to give up the body soon. Rick went over to Andrea but she pulled a gun on him. Shane was about to try and talk to her.

"Shane don't, she wants to be alone." Brooke told him but she didn't know Andrea could hear her. "She wants to be with her sister. She'll handle it when she needs too just leave her be." Shane ran his hand through his hair and walked away.

"Thank you." Andrea said quietly.

"I know how you feel. I wanted to be alone when my mother died." She stopped and looked at Daryl. "You only let the most important person in."

"Amy was one of those people." Andrea said.

"Amy was a great person." Brooke said. "I'll leave you alone so you can be with her."

"Thank you." Brooke walked over to Glenn who was crying.

"We don't burn them! They were people just like us! They need to buried in the decent way! The right way!" he cried.

"You left my brother for dead," Daryl barked. "you had this coming." He was about to continue the burning of the bodies but someone pulled him away into the woods.

"Daryl, you need to watch what you say. We all just went through a lot." She said calmly.

"Watch what I say? Why should I? What happened here, these people had it coming." He fired back. "They think that just because Merle had a few issues that he should be locked to a roof and left there for dead."

"No one deserves what happened to Merle or what happened last night!" Brooke exclaimed. "At least Merle made it out and is most likely alive! Merle knows how to take care of himself! Andrea just lost her sister and you want to burn her body!"

"Are you seriously arguing with me on this, Brooke?" he yelled.

"Yes! You're not the only one who's lost someone here! If you were bitten and died I wouldn't burn the bodies! I would bury them because you were one of them! What if I died just then Daryl and T-Dog wanted to burn the bodies? Would you let him?" Brooke argued back. He didn't answer so she turned around to go back to the camp. Daryl grabbed her wrist and pulled her back over. He hugged her a little too tightly.

"Please don't ever ask me that again. I can't stand the fact of losing you." He said. "I'm sorry it's just I'm so angry with them."

"I know you are but it's not like they all planned it. Only Rick and T-Dog but they went back for him even though they knew the risks of going back into the city. They did the best they could. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"Ever since the day we met you've always apologized for things that weren't your fault." Daryl said while he looked at her and smiled. "Come on we need to go back." They walked back together and Daryl put out the fire. Brooke always knew how to handle situations like this. She was always there for him when he was confused or didn't know what to do. She was there for him in his most difficult times. One even brought them closer together.

_It was three months before the outbreak. It was just a little chilly outside for February in Georgia. Brooke had gotten a job at the local hospital and was doing very well. Daryl had called her on her day off._

_ "Hey Brooke!" Daryl greeted._

_ "Hey Daryl, what's up?" Brooke asked._

_ "I need your help." He said. "I have to look after my Meemaw today and for a long time. She's not been doing very well lately and I was wondering if you would come with me?"_

_ "I'd be more than happy to help." She said._

_ "I'll come pick you up in a bit." They left and arrived at Meemaw Dixon's house. He knocked on the door and a cute old lady with curly white hair opened it. She was short with blue eyes and red lips. Daryl was wearing his usual and Brooke was wearing a pink button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up, jeans, and black flats. Her hair was straightened and flowed behind her._

_ "Hi there baby face!" She said. She hugged and kissed Daryl on the cheek._

_ "Hey Meemaw!" He replied. Meemaw Dixon looked at Brooke._

_ "Well, who is this lovely lady?" she smiled._

_ "This is my friend Brooke." He said. Meemaw Dixon walked over and gave her a hug._

_ "Hello Mrs. Dixon!" Brooke greeted awkwardly._

_ "Just call me Meemaw Dixon, sweetheart!" Brooke nodded and Meemaw Dixon led them inside. A small, black, cat with green eyes purred against Daryl's leg. "Don't mind Salem, he loves people!" They all sat in the living room for little while and Meemaw Dixon stood up._

_ "I'm going to go fix dinner." She announced._

_ "Would you like me to help?" Brooke asked._

_ "That would be wonderful!" she said and Brooke followed her. They went and started to make Meemaw's specialty soup._

_ "So Meemaw Dixon, what would you like to talk about?" Brooke asked. In their conversation in the living room Brooke answered all of her questions and she did the same. Meemaw Dixon was a wonderful person._

_ "I remember what it was like to be young and in love." She reminisced. Brooke smiled. "My husband's name was Andrew. He was very sweet and he took me on my first date."_

_ "So Daryl's Pawpaw was your first and only love?" Brooke asked._

_ "Yes, Andrew was a great man. Our first date he took me to a small coffee shop. He talked about airplanes and on our first anniversary as a married couple he took me on one." Meemaw Dixon told Brooke more stories of Andrew Dixon. The soup was almost done. Meemaw was funny when she didn't mean to be and Brooke felt bad for laughing but she couldn't hold it in. Brooke was about to taste the soup when she heard one of the most disturbing things. "Andrew was a great husband. He always made sure I was happy." Brooke smiled back and put the spoon in her mouth to taste the soup. _

_ "Hey Brooke, will you come with me for a minute?" Daryl asked in the doorway._

_ "Sure." She said and walked to him. He pulled her into the other room._

_ "Is everything okay?" he asked._

_ "Your Meemaw is wonderful! She's adorable and she does tell some pretty nice stories. Why are you so concerned?" She asked._

_ "Sorry it's just that Meemaw is very protective sometimes." He said and kissed her forehead. "Come on dinner's ready." He led her to the dining room and they ate the wonderful meal. They stood up to leave and Meemaw Dixon asked them one last question._

_ "So how long have you two been a couple?" she asked._

_ "Oh no, Meemaw we aren't together like that." Daryl replied._

_ "Why not?" Meemaw Dixon asked. "She's a great person, she's funny, and she's a doctor! Plus she has great birthing hips!" Daryl snickered and Brooke smiled and blushed._

_ "Bye Meemaw." He said and kissed her cheek._

_ "Bye Meemaw Dixon." Brooke said and they gave each other a hug. Brooke would help Daryl watch Meemaw Dixon about three times a week. Meemaw Dixon had begun to feel like grandmother to Brooke and she really started to care about her like she was part of the Walsh family. One day, two weeks before the outbreak, Brooke got a call from Daryl._

_ "Hey Brooke, can you check on Meemaw really quick." He asked. "I have to go into work and I know it's your day off."_

_ "No problem! Let me just finish my hair." She said. They said goodbye and hung up. Brooke drove her new Blue Prius Hybrid to Meemaw Dixon's house. Her last Prius finally gave out on her. She didn't mind, she wanted the new car. Brooke took the spare key from under the mat and unlocked the door. Salem didn't greet her. He would usually trot up to her and rub against her leg._

_ "Salem?" she asked. The cat didn't meow and Meemaw Dixon didn't answer. "Meemaw Dixon?" she asked. She checked the kitchen, the living room, the dining room, everywhere. She went to her bedroom and saw Meemaw Dixon lying face down on the ground. "Meemaw!" she yelled and rolled her over. _

_ "Umph…" Meemaw Dixon whimpered. She still had a heartbeat and Brooke pulled out her I phone and called an ambulance. They were there in less than five minutes and stated she had a heart attack. Brooke called Daryl and he said he would call Merle. Daryl ran into the waiting room._

_ "Is she okay? Is she gonna make it?" Daryl asked. Brooke had been crying but she knew she couldn't hide what she knew._

_ "Daryl, her heart isn't strong enough. She's not going to make it." Brooke sniffed. "She wants to see you though." Daryl hugged Brooke and went into the room. Meemaw was barely hanging on but she could still talk and move her head. Daryl grabbed her hand._

_ "Hey Meemaw." He said quietly._

_ "Hi baby face." She replied quietly. "I know this is our last conversation so I want to make it count. There's something I absolutely need to tell you."_

_ "What is it Meemaw?" he asked. "I'm listening."_

_ "I know you love Brooke." She said. "It's very easy to tell and I know she loves you too. You can tell from the looks that she gives you. Don't let her go. You need to grab her now before it's too late. I want you to be happy and I know she makes you happy." Daryl knew she was right. He had loved her for so long but he was too scared to tell her. "I love you so much Daryl."_

_ "I love you too Meemaw." He let tears stream down his face._

_ "Tell Merle I love him." Meemaw breathed and Daryl felt her hand go limp in his hand. He heard the machine and saw a straight line. He knew she was in a better place. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and the nurses came in. He walked out and saw Brooke there. She looked up at him with her glossy, dark blue eyes. He ran to her and cried in the crook of her neck. Merle ran in._

_ "Where's Meemaw?" he asked. He saw Daryl and Brooke and his face fell._

_ "She told me to tell you that she loved you." Daryl said. Merle sat down in a chair with wide eyes. He silently cried and Brooke went over to him with a box of tissues. He looked at her, stood up, and crashed into her. He hugged her and did nothing else._

_ "Thank you so much for helping take care of her." Merle said. She hugged him back and gave him a kiss on the cheek. The boys had to start planning the funeral for Meemaw Dixon. She wanted to be cremated and her remains scattered into the ocean. Brooke said they could borrow the beach house and they said they wanted her to be there. They stood at the edge of the ocean with her ashes in an urn. The boys wore black button up shirts, black slacks, and black dress shoes since they didn't have tuxedos. Brooke wore a black dress that went wroud her shoulders, it hugged her nicely curvy body but it wasn't tight. It went to her knees and she wore a pair of black heels. Her hair was pulled back in a small bun and she wore red lipstick just like Meemaws. The boys scattered the ashes across the ocean at sunset according to Meemaws wishes._

_ "I'm goin' back home." Merle said quietly. Daryl nodded and Merle left. Daryl and Brooke walked back into the beach house. Daryl stayed quiet and sat on the couch. Brooke gave him a kiss on the cheek and a glass of water before disappearing. Daryl sat there and thought about what Meemaw said. He did love Brooke. He loved her more than anything. Were Meemaw's words the truth though? Did she love him back? Daryl heard a hiccup coming from Brooke's room and opened the door. She saw her sitting in a chair with some tissues in her hands. She didn't wear mascara, just some eye shadow and eyeliner so it didn't run down her face. She looked up at him and hung her head down._

_ "I didn't want you to see me like this." She said quietly. Daryl went over to her._

_ "She's in a better place." He said._

_ "It's not that Daryl." She replied. He gave her a confused look. "If I had just put my hair in a pony tail or didn't do my makeup, maybe she would be alive. I can't help but think that if I hadn't had taken so long, she would be alive. I would've been there to help her. I can't help but think that she would be alive right now if it wasn't for me." He could see her bottom lip quiver and she buried her face in her hands. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm… so… sorry." He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Brook really thought she was responsible for Meemaw's death. He made her stand up and he buried his face into the crook of her neck. He looked into her eyes and held her head. His thumbs stroked her cheeks away from the tears._

_ "Brooke, listen to me. You didn't cause Meemaws death. Her heart wasn't strong enough and no one could change that." He said._

_ "I must seem so selfish." She said and looked down at the ground. "I'm so sorry."_

_ "Stop apologizing Brooke." Daryl finally said. "You did nothing wrong. You're not selfish. Trust me, you're perfect." Daryl sighed and lifted her face to look at his. "You're perfect in every way." He said more to himself than to her. He saw in her face the look that Meemaw was talking about. He knew she loved him too. "Brooke." He said. "I love you." She looked at him, not with a look of shock, but more a look of pure happiness. She didn't smile but simply stared into his eyes._

_ "I love you too, Daryl." She said. He slowly moved his head towards hers and they kissed. This time, there were no interruptions. This time, the kiss wasn't a simple thank you. This time, it was love. The kiss became more passionate and he went to unzip her dress. She went to unbutton his shirt._

_ "Do you want to do this?" he asked. "I don't want to pressure you."_

_ "I do." Brooke said and her dress fell to the ground. They moved over to the bed and continued. After that, Daryl knew she was his. She had finally gotten the girl he had been chasing for eleven years. Brooke had gotten the guy she had been in love with since she was fifteen. Nothing could change that they finally had each other._

Daryl stopped putting pick axes though what he was doing and looked over at Brooke. He needed to talk to her and he needed to do it fast. He loved Brooke and he needed to reassure her that he would never leave her and that he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life. He needed to tell her all these things that were built up inside before it was too late. Daryl heard a muffled yell and Brooke immediately ran over to Jim. Shane lifted his shirt. Jim had been bit. He could see Brooke's face fall. He walked over to the group with the pick axe.

"What do we do about Jim?" Shane asked.

"I say we put a pick axe through his head." Daryl said and Rick gave him a pointed look.

"We don't kill the living." He said.

"He's gonna turn into a walker!" Daryl said. "We're gonna have to kill him anyway. He felt the pick axe being taken from his hands and heard a thump. They all looked to see Brooke. She had thrown the pick axe away towards the dead bodies that he was working on earlier.

"We don't kill the living." She repeated and helped Jacqui put Jim in the RV. Daryl went back over to the bodies and picked up the axe. He was about to hit Ed the Wife Beater in the head but Carol came over before he could.

"I'll do it." She said. "He was my husband." He handed her the pick axe and she hit him repeatedly in the head.

_"Is this what Mom wanted to do to Dad?" _He thought. They heard a gunshot and saw Andrea with Amy still in her arms. Only this time there was a bullet through Amy's temple. They put the bodies into the graves that Jim had dug. They had a small service and after Rick and Shane went into the woods Rick announced they were going to the CDC the next day.

No one ate that night. No one could after what happened. Brooke sat in tent, holding her mother's cross with her thumb and index figure. She had blank eyes and was still thinking about what happened. Jim had gone to sleep but was throwing up every few minutes. He couldn't even keep water down. Rudy stayed with Jim so that he would have some company. She sat in her long, purple, PJ pants, and white cami. Daryl walked into the tent and sat in front of her.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, just lost in thought I guess." She shrugged.

"Brooke, I need to talk to you." He said.

"Alright, shoot." She said.

"A week before the outbreak we started dating. We told each other that we loved each other." He said. "I want that to continue because I don't know what will happen." Brooke bit her bottom lip and thought. He leaned in and kissed her. She didn't hesitate and kissed him back. He gently pushed her back onto the cot and they continued on. They made love but neither of them went to sleep afterwards. Brooke thought about what she had to say to him. Her head and her left hand rested on his chest while his were on her shoulder and hip. After a long silence she finally broke it.

"Daryl I was scared." She admitted.

"About what?" he asked.

"About everything. When I first came to the camp I prayed that you were here. When I saw you, all I wanted to do was tell you how much I missed you and loved you but I was so scared. I was a coward. I thought that if we did continue our relationship the way it had just become then I would lose you too early and it would just be even more difficult to go through. I'm still scared to do be with you because I'm so afraid that I'll lose you." She silently cried and hoped Daryl wouldn't notice. He sat up but still held her. He moved her in front of him and held her close with his chest pressing against hers.

"I'm scared too." He admitted. "But I need you Brooke. I need you to be with me through this. I know it will be hard but I know we can do it." He kissed her lips firmly and hugged her. "I love you so much Brooke."

"I love you too Daryl." She said.

"Come on, we need to get some sleep." He said and she nodded. They laid back down and they almost immediately went to sleep. They knew that they would be there for each other. They knew deep down that they could live in this new, strange, world.


	13. Chapter 13: Never Underestimate

Chapter 13: Never Underestimate

Brooke woke up the next morning still in Daryl's arms. She smiled and got up from the bed. He grabbed her waist and pulled her back down. She squeaked as she fell on top of him and he laughed.

"That's payback." He smirked.

"All I did was wake you up, you just happened to snort." She replied.

"I still think you planned it."

"You fell asleep on my cheek! I couldn't move it!" she defended.

"Let's just say we're even." He said. She scooted up and kissed him.

"Even, now let's get dressed. We gotta pack up and I gotta check on Jim." She gave him another quick kiss and got dressed. She pulled on a red v-neck, a light pair of skinny jeans, and her combat boots. She brushed out her messy hair so it was straight and left the tent. She walked into the RV.

"Hey Jimmy, how're you doing?" she asked.

"I can't keep anything down, doc." He replied in a raspy voice. Rudy was at the end of his bed with his head across his legs.

"Here let me clean out the bucket really quick." She sighed. "Just relax and take slow breaths." She came back just in time. "We're going to the CDC. Maybe they have a cure for you there?"

"Hopefully. What were you doing at that medical convention? Just tell me something to take my mind off this, please."

"Well it was on this." She replied. "I am a medical doctor but I do cancer research as well. They invited me along with a couple other doctors to go to Atlanta and study it. Once I realized that this was worse than it seemed I called a limited amount of people to go to my beach house. I left a day early so I could grab some things and leave town. I had to stop at the grocery store Glenn found me at so I just stayed there."

"Do you think there is a cure?" he asked.

"It's possible." She said.

"Slim chance, huh?" he replied.

"Nothing is impossible." She said in a warm tone. She checked his temperature, which was through the roof, refilled his water, and left with Rudy. Rick walked back from the Mustang which he put a note on.

"Is everyone ready?" he asked.

"Um, we're not going." Morales said. "We have family in Montgomery. I have to think about what's best for my family."

"You won't have anyone to watch your back." Shane said.

"That's a risk we have to take." Morales said. Rick went over and gave him a radio.

"Be careful out there." Rick said and shook Morales' hand. Carl and Sophia ran to the kids and cried. Brooke said her goodbyes to the adults but the kids jumped into her arms. She put them down and gave the family a kiss on their cheeks. She left and called Rudy into her car. They left the quarry and went on the road. They drove until the RV broke down again from the lack of a radiator hose. They all got out of their cars. They stood around trying to figure out what to do when Jacqui came out of the RV.

"Guys, it's Jim. He's not doing well at all!" she said. Brooke climbed into the RV.

"Hey there Jimmy." She greeted. "What's up?"

"Brooke, I want to die. I want you to leave me outside." Brooke was about to protest. "I want this. Please, just leave me here with my decision." Brooke nodded and went outside.

"He wants us to leave him here." She told them. "He practically begged me to let him die. I say it's his decision, let him do what he wants. He personally thinks its best. I think he finally wants to be reunited with his family." The others nodded and carried him out under the shade of a tree. They all went over to him one by one and said their goodbyes. Brooke walked over to him with tears in her eyes.

"Hey there Doc." He smiled and she chuckled. "You be careful out there. Take good care of this group for me okay?"

"Of course I will." She said wiping her eyes.

"Thank you so much for taking care of me and standing up for me back there." He said. "You're a great person." She gave him a kiss on his cheek.

"You're a great person too. Goodbye Jim." She said.

"Goodbye Doc." He replied and she walked away from him. Glenn stood there and offered her a hug. He had been crying as well. She hugged him and he comforted her. Daryl could feel the anger in his body. "They're just friends." Jim said to him. Daryl nodded and walked away from him.

"You okay?" she asked Glenn.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine." He said trying to sound as manly as possible. "Are you?"

"Yeah, he was just a good guy. He kinda reminds me of my dad sometimes." She said.

"Come on! We gotta go!" Daryl yelled. Brooke smiled and squeezed Glenn's hand as she left to go to her car and Rudy followed. Not before he licked Jim's face of course.

_"Glenn's really nice. He's such a good friend."_ Brooke thought.

_"Man, Brooke is so hot!"_ Glenn thought. "_Never tried out this whole friends first thing before." _They all drove away, leaving Jim to the elements. Brooke looked in her mirror and saw Jim waving at her. She waved back and felt her tears coming back. She quickly shook them away and kept going. Rudy rested his head on the glove compartment and whined a little bit.

"It's okay boy." She told him and patted his head. They arrived at the CDC at sunset. There were dead bodies everywhere. Most of them were Army. They walked up and the CDC was closed. Rudy started to snarl.

"Walkers!" Daryl called.

"Come on man this is a dead end!" Shane told Rick. They started to walk away.

"The camera moved!" Rick said. "Didn't you see it?" Brooke ran to Rick.

"I saw it!" she claimed.

"Please open the door you're killing us! We have children!" Rick told the camera.

"Rick come on man let's go!" Shane yelled.

"Come on Doc!" T-Dog yelled. They were about to walk away when the door opened. A blinding light came through.

"Are any of you bit?" a man asked.

"One but he didn't make it." Brooke said.

"What do you want?"

"A chance." Rick answered.

"That's an awful lot to ask for these days." The man said. "To gain admission everyone has to take a blood test."

"We can do that." Brooke said.

"Grab your things. Once this door closes it stays closed." They all grabbed their things and went into a huge elevator. The man introduced himself as Dr. Edwin Jenner. The rest introduced themselves.

"Dr. Brooke Walsh." She greeted and shook his hand. "I've read about your work. I'm very impressed and it's an honor to meet you."

"Well, I've never had anyone say that to me before." Dr. Jenner smiled. "Well, always pleased to meet a fan." They went underground and they took a blood test. Brooke was more than happy to help Jenner with it. Once Andrea was done she almost fell to the ground.

"Are you okay?" Jenner asked.

"She hasn't eaten in days. None of us had." Brooke explained.

"Get your group together, the cafeteria has lots of food and drinks." He said. She nodded and got her group together. They all gathered around a table in the cafeteria. They ate delicious warm food for the first time in a long time. Most people just had a glass of wine. Daryl had his bottle of whiskey to keep him company. They talked and laughed at each other's stories.

"Can I try some?" Carl asked his mother who was drinking her red wine.

"Oh I don't know." She replied.

"Come on, what harm could it do?" Rick asked. Lori laughed and gave him her glass. He started slow at first but then took a quick gulp. His face scrunched up.

"Ew!" he yelped. Lori gave him a kiss on his head.

"That's my boy." She said. Brooke laughed.

"I would just stick to soda, handsome." Brooke chuckled. Daryl looked at Glenn.

"Not you little man! I wanna see how red your face can get!" Daryl exclaimed and passed him the Jack Daniels. Glenn shot a panicked look at Brooke who was still laughing. He took a sip.

"That's good!" Glenn said. Brooke took a sip of her water.

"Come on girly!" Shane said. "Take a swig of whiskey! I know you love it!"

"Oh no thank you." Brooke said. Jenner secretly smiled at her. She reminded him so much of his wife. She was happy, polite, and smart.

"Come on! I know you can't drink but live a little!" Daryl said.

"I can drink! I just don't do it all the time. I know I can drink better than you!" Brooke said. Shane and Rick laughed and Daryl had a evil smirk on his face. She knew she shouldn't had said her last sentence.

"Is that a challenge?" Daryl asked.

"Oh!" the group echoed.

"Alright how about this?" Rick announced. "Ten seconds is the limit, who ever can continually drink the longest wins."

"Come here Little Walsh!" Daryl challenged. Brooke ran a hand through her hair and sighed. She looked over at Jenner and mouthed an apology. He nodded and motioned with his hand to go.

"I'll be the official!" T-Dog said. "I don't know what Little Walsh will try and pull. "Alright Daryl, you first." Daryl went and drank for about five seconds. They all counted it and he shook his head after. He passed the bottle to Brooke.

"Go, unless you're chicken." He mocked a chicken. She rolled her eyes.

"You watching me Teddy?" she asked.

"Ready when you are Little Walsh!" he chuckled. Brooke took a deep breath and lifted the bottle up. They counted and she could see Daryl's eyes grow wide. She stopped at eight seconds and gasped. They all clapped and cheered for Brooke.

"Ok no more for me! I'll stick to water but just know I can indeed drink!" she said and slowly walked back to her chair. She lifted her glass of water. "We have not yet properly thanked our host Dr. Edwin Jenner. Thank you for welcoming us into the CDC. You are a very kind gentleman. Cheers!" Dr. Jenner raised his glass and nodded.

"Booyah!" Daryl cheered.

"So if I may ask, what happened here?" Shane asked.

"Shane, not now."

"Well, I'm the only one here. Everyone else left or ended themselves. I just continued working." Jenner continued his sad story and the group got quiet.

"Dude, you are such a buzz kill." Glenn said to Shane who hung his head. Jenner walked them through the facility.

"We have beds, couches, books, just don't use any of the games or anything that'll suck up the power. Watch it with the hot water too." He said.

"Hot water?" Glenn asked.

"That's what the man said." T-Dog smiled. While the showers were taken up Brooke showed herself around. She walked into an office with a picture on the desk. She looked at the picture and remembered the woman. Someone knocked on the door behind her.

"I'm sorry Dr. Jenner, I didn't know this was your office." Brooke apologized.

"Do you know who she is?" he asked.

"Dr. Alice Jenner." She replied. "I've read about her before. She's truly brilliant and contributed so much."

"I'm surprised you know so much about scientists." He replied.

"What can I say, I'm a nerd." She said and he chuckled. "Is she…"

"Yes." He said sadly.

"I'm so sorry." She said.

"Did you know anything about the virus before the outbreak?" Jenner asked.

"I did research on the side of being a medical doctor. I specialized in cancer research. I went to a convention for it with a couple of doctors that were selected with me. I quickly knew that this was so much worse than they said it was." She sighed remembering the doctors she went with. "Do you think that there's any way that there is a cure?"

"It's possible but it's very slim." He said.

"What about natural immunity?" she asked.

"I've thought about that and tested it." He replied. "There can be a natural immunity with a certain blood type." He said. After a long conversation he told her the showers were ready. She took that as a goodbye and left. Rudy trotted down the hall as wet as he could be. He smelled fresh and not like a dirty sock. Carl came up to her.

"I bathed him!" he said. She gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"Thanks, handsome!" she said and continued to the showers. No one was in there except her. She turned on the hot water, found strawberry shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. She grabbed a razor from her bag and shaved for the first time in a long time. She closed the curtain behind her. She started to dance along to the song in her head.

_"You make me feel like I'm livin' a teenage dream! The way you turn me on! I can't sleep, lets run away and don't ever look back! Don't ever look back!"_ she belted. She heard a chuckle on the outside. She stuck her head outside of the curtain and saw Daryl.

"You sure that whiskey didn't get to ya?" he snickered. Her face got really red.

"I just like that song okay!" she said and continued her shower. She heard her curtain open and saw Daryl standing there. "Man, you are a pig. What have you been doing? Rolling around in the mud?"

"Shut up." He smiled. She still had pink suds on her body. He went up to her and embraced her.

"Uh-uh." She said. "You know me, Mrs. Germaphobe. You come and get me when you're clean." She kissed him real quick but ran out with her towel when he tried to grab her again. She snickered when she heard him moan in aggravation. She put on a pair of yoga pants over her underwear, a blue cami, and brushed her hair out. She opened the door and saw Shane storming down the hallway. He had scratches on his neck that were oozing with blood. "Shane, what happened?" she asked.

"Nothing." He grumbled. She led him to a lounge and got her bag full of medi-kits. She started to clean the wound and put bandages over it.

"Did Lori do it?" she asked and he nodded. "What happened between you two now. First, I catch you two in the act, then Jacqui tells me she yelled at you to leave her and Carl alone, now she scratched your neck." She asked. Shane looked at her in shock. "Never underestimate my ability to find shit out." She smirked and Shane chuckled.

"I lost it Brooke." He hung his head in shame. "I asked her why she's been treating me the way she has. I explained to her that I tried to save Rick and I thought he was dead! I love her, Brooke."

"Okay, why did she scratch you?" she asked.

"I may have tried to-" he began.

"Shane!" She exclaimed. "I can't believe you!" she calmed down after a few breaths. "You need to tell Rick what happened when he was gone. Things may actually turn out okay and he'll forgive you. She needed someone for comfort and she turned to you. I'm sure he'll understand." She finished putting bandages on his neck. "You're good to go." Shane gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"Thanks baby girl." He said and walked away to his room. Brooke saw bookshelves that were alphabetized. Just like the ones in her home. She searched and found her favorite book, To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee. She grabbed it along with Little Women and went to her room. She cozied up on her bed and began to read Harper Lee's masterpiece. Someone came in and sat down in front of her.

"Well, hello!" she greeted Daryl. "You're finally clean!"

"You happy now?" he asked.

"Very." She gave him a quick kiss.

"What're you readin'?" he asked.

"To Kill a Mockingbird." She answered.

"I've actually read that book before. But it's been a long time." He replied.

"It's my favorite but I'm about to put it down just one…more… page." She said and shut the book.

"I let you win by the way." He smirked.

"No you didn't! You never let me win. It's always a fair fight." She defended.

"Whatever you want to believe, darlin'." He said.

"I won fair and square." She said.

"Alright, you won fair and square." He said sarcastically. She rolled her eyes in annoyance and pinned him down on the bed. He tried to break free but this time she made sure he wouldn't get away.

"Tell me I won fair and square and I'll let go." She said.

"Walsh let go!" He ordered.

"No!" she smirked. "Tell me I won!"

"Never admit to defeat before and I'm not going to now!" He said. She leaned down and kissed him. She lifted her head up and he tried to lean up to catch her again.

"Tell me." She said and raised her eyebrows. She moved her face so it was inches away from his but far enough that he couldn't reach her. She bit her bottom lip to keep from bursting out laughing at his facial expression.

"Ugh, alright fine! You won fair and square! You can drink so much better than I can!" he admitted. She let go of his wrists and put her hands on his cheeks that were red. She kissed him again and he rubbed her back. His hands went under her shirt and she went to remove his white t-shirt. They continued and fell asleep after talking about whatever came to their minds. They woke up the next morning and got dressed. He wore a sleeveless, dark brown, button up shirt, jeans, and hunting boots. She wore a bright blue tank top that was shorter in the front and lower in the back. It didn't show any skin other than her arms, she wore jeans, and her lace up combat boots. She pulled her hair up in a high pony tail and he put her arm around her shoulders.

"I actually have to go get something real quick." She said and kissed his cheek in the hallway.

"Alright, love you." He said and kissed her on the lips.

"Love you too." She gave him another quick kiss and went in the other direction. Daryl turned with a flush in his cheeks. He saw Glenn at the end of the hallway just staring at him.

"Hey short round." He said and Glenn winced in pain at his hangover. Daryl snickered and they continued to the cafeteria. T-Dog had made eggs for everyone and Brooke soon walked in. Rudy greeted her. Shane asked Jenner for more information and he led them to a control room. He showed them a video of subject TS-19.

"Is that the brain?" Andrea asked.

"A brilliant one." He said and looked at Brooke who gave him a look of sympathy. It then showed Dr. Alice Jenner getting shot in the head.

"What happens when the clock strikes zero?" Dale asked.

"The basement generator will run out of fuel very soon and then something else will happen." Jenner replied. Some of the men went down to the basement and found empty gas drums. They feel the air conditioning turn off. The men returned.

"What happens when the clock reaches zero." Lori asked Jenner.

"The CDC is home to many diseases and viruses. Nothing is getting out of here. When the clock reaches zero the air will combust. No pain, just an instant death." He replied.

"Wait, who moved all of our bags in here?" Lori asked.

"I did." Brooke said. "I moved them in here this morning. Yesterday when we were taking a tour I noticed the clock. I knew what it meant. I have been here many times before. I knew we couldn't leave because like Jenner said, once the doors close they stay closed." She said. Doors closed all around them.

"It's better this way." Jenner said. Rudy sat next to Brooke knowing they were in trouble. Daryl and Shane tried to break down the doors with axes but it didn't work. Brooke sat next to Jenner making sure that no one would hurt him. She knew she could get him to help them.

"Jenner, you may think we don't have any time. We don't have a choice." She could hear Shane shooting his shotgun but then being tackled to the ground. He wasn't really helping her argument. "We have a choice."

"Your wife didn't have a choice but you do." Rick said. "That's all we want is our choice." Jenner sighed and opened the doors.

"There's your chance, take it." Jenner said. Rick shook hands with him and Jenner whispered something in his ear. Rick turned pale but ran out. T-Dog had to leave Jacqui behind and Dale was trying to get Andrea to come with them.

"Brooke let's go!" Shane yelled.

"Thank you Jenner." She said.

"You need to know something too." He said and whispered something in her ear. She gripped on to her bags even tighter. She heard Rudy whine and Daryl and Shane continued to scream for her to come. She hugged Jenner. "Good luck Dr. Walsh." She nodded and ran with Rudy over to Daryl and Shane. Daryl grabbed her hand and ran towards the exit. Carol speeded up to Rick after failed attempts of trying to break the glass.

"I found this in your uniform when I washed it." She said digging around in her purse.

"I don't think a nail file is gonna help." Shane said. Carol pulled out a grenade and ran back towards the group for cover. He put it up against the glass and pulled the pin.

"Run Rick!" Brooke yelled.

"Shit!" He yelled and dove away. BOOM! It broke through the glass. They all ran out to their cars. Shane pulled Brooke over to the Jeep along with Rudy and he shielded them from the blast. The last thing that Brook saw before being shielded was Andrea and Dale ducking behind some sandbags. The explosion ran through their ears. They all looked and saw smoke coming from the place that used to be the CDC. Shane hugged Brooke with all of his might. She ran back to her car but not before running to see if Daryl was okay. She and Rudy got in their car and drove along with the rest to the unknown.


	14. Chapter 14: Pure Anger

Hey guys! I meant to do this in the last chapter so sorry. Another MASSIVE thank you for the views, favorites, follows, and reviews! It really means a lot and I really appreciate it! Remember, I love to hear from you guys so feel free to leave reviews! Thanks again and as always, happy reading!

Chapter 14: Pure Anger

They all drove away from the CDC after Rick tried to contact someone he had run into when he escaped the hospital. Their new destination would be Fort Benning which was 125 miles away. Daryl was on Merle's motorcycle following the group. They soon came across a road with cars blocking parts of the road. Of course, the RV broke down right then and there. They all got out and joined in a group.

"I think we should search the cars for some things." Brooke said. "Who knows what we'll find."

"This is a graveyard. I don't know how I feel about that." Lori said. "There are dead bodies in there."

"I just found some water cooling tanks!" Shane announced.

"I'm starting to think that checking the cars may not be a bad thing." Dale said while Shane started to take a "shower". Brooke successfully broke into a silver Hummer. She found some dog food for Rudy, medi-kits, granola bars, and some more water cooling tanks. She pulled out a pair of earrings and smiled. They were very fancy and were real. They were diamond earrings that dangled and she had a similar pair that she had worn to a masquerade ball. Daryl looked over from the car he was looting and saw Brooke holding up a pair of earrings. He remembered she had some just like those.

_Brooke had just turned 22 and Daryl was 24. It was late September and it was time for the Georgia Annual Masquerade Ball. This was Brooke's first time going. It was exclusive and it was held in the King County Conference center this year. Only certain people were selected and it was usually the richer families that were invited to go. Brooke wore a red ball gown with a beaded bodice and a tulle skirt. She wore a white mask that covered the upper bridge of her nose. It ended at the top of her cheekbones and at the top of her eyebrows. It had a white background but had lace on top of it. She wore beautiful diamond earrings that killed her ears. Her hair was pulled up in a beautiful up do. She walked in with Shane and her father. Her father had been bugging her about getting a boyfriend lately and she always went Daryl to vent._

_ "I don't see what the hurry is, Daryl! I want to become a doctor before I get married! Is that too much for him to understand?" she would always say. He would simply nod, give her a hug, and buy her some coffee. Her father had been driving her crazy about it for almost a year. His argument was that he and her mother got married when she was 22 and that Brooke wasn't even close to getting married yet. Daryl knew that her father was going to try and set her up with the richest men in Georgia at the ball. She stood there with her father's friends chatting about the latest research discoveries._

_ "Brooke, will you come with me for a minute?" her father asked._

_ "Excuse me." She said and walked away. "What's up Dad?"_

_ "I want you to meet Liam Reynolds. He's currently in Harvard Law School with a scholarship." Dr. Walsh introduced._

_ "Very pleased to meet you Brook." Liam said in weird accent. _

_ "I'll let you two get acquainted." Dr. Walsh said._

_ "Wait Dad!" Brooke said but Dr. Walsh had already walked away. She gave an awkward smile._

_ "So your father tells me you want to be a doctor for cancer patients and do some research as well?" Liam asked after taking a sip of his white wine._

_ "Real men drink whiskey." Brook thought. "Yes and you're a lawyer? What kind?" she asked._

_ "Training to be a lawyer." He corrected._

_ "Sorry, training to be a lawyer." She replied. "Are you doing court room?" he chuckled and she didn't catch the joke she had apparently made. "Did I say something funny?" she asked._

_ "No it's just typical for someone to go straight for court room." He said. "I want to be a corporate lawyer."_

_ "Oh that's interesting." She lied. Man could she really go for a drink right about now. She excused herself and went to talk to some other people. Her father pulled her away to meet more doctors, lawyers, and business men. She snuck away to talk to Shane who was wooing some women._

_ "Shane I'm about to kill Dad." She said._

_ "Why?"_

_ "He keeps on trying to set me up with all these guys! I don't want to meet them! They are all insufferably boring!" she said._

_ "Well, Dad is just trying to look out for you. It may not be a bad idea of his." He shrugged._

_ "What do you mean?" she asked._

_ "Brooke, you haven't had a boyfriend in a long time. Since high school actually." He started._

_ "I'm well aware of that." She said getting a little more irritated by the moment._

_ "Maybe it's time you settled down." He said. "You can't always be so independent you know. You are going to have to rely on a man soon."_

_ "I will never have to do that Shane! I'm trying to get my doctorate so I can support myself. I don't feel like being forced into a relationship and you should be the one to talk! You're the one who's older than me and just has one night stands all the time!" she argued back._

_ "Darling, why don't you come meet-"Dr. Walsh began. _

_ "UGH!" she groaned and stormed off. She picked up her dress and went into a room with a leather couch and a four foot, steel, pot with some real sunflowers in them. Brooke rubbed her temples with her index and middle fingers. She was so frustrated she kicked the flower pot. Someone popped up from the couch._

_ "Hey!" he warned._

_ "Oh my God!" she exclaimed in horror. She prayed it wasn't one of her dad's friends. "I'm so sorry!"_

_ "Is everything okay?" he asked._

_ "Yeah it's just…" she could feel her cheeks blushing in embarrassment. "Never mind I'm just going to leave before I further embarrass myself._

_ "Let me guess." He began. "Your father or mother or someone that cares about you is trying to set you up with some privileged guy?" he guessed._

_ "Very good." She said impressed. He stood up and he was wearing a very nice black suit with a black mask. He had bright blue eyes that pierced through the blackness. It reminded her so much of Westley from The Princess Bride._

_ "So what's your name?" he asked._

_ "Brooke Walsh." She said and they shook hands. "Are you going to tell me yours?"_

_ "Westley Goldman." He answered and she giggled._

_ "Sorry it's just you kind of remind me of Westley from the Princess Bride." She giggled. "You're wearing a black mask, a black suit, and you have blue eyes."_

_ "I love that movie!" he said._

_ "It's my favorite!" she enthused._

_ "You look like you've had a bad night." He said._

_ "My dad keeps trying to set me up with these doctors and lawyers who tell the worst jokes in the world." She said._

_ "It can't be that bad." He suggested._

_ "One lawyer tried to tell me the why did the chicken cross the road joke." She said._

_ "Oh man!" he howled. "What did you do?"_

_ "I pretended to think it was funny." She replied. "I have my fake laugh down and after tonight I'll have it perfected."_

_ "Would you like something to drink?" he asked._

_ "God yes!" she answered. "What are you getting?"_

_ "A shot of whiskey, you?" he answered._

_ "The same." She said and Westley looked at her in a weird way. "I'm a whiskey kind of girl. Don't try to give me champagne if you want to talk to me." He chuckled and they drank their shots._

_ "I'm pretty sure this is the weirdest thing I've ever seen." He said after she drank. "I just saw a masked woman in a white ball gown drink a shot of whiskey." Brooke laughed. "Was that your fake laugh?" he asked._

_ "No that was my real laugh." She replied. She looked out and saw her dad talking to some young men who looked to be only a couple of years older than her. She sighed and held her glass a little tighter. "So what do you do for a living?"_

_ "I'm a journalist." He said._

_ "I haven't met a lot of those tonight." She replied._

_ "Well my father is a doctor and he took me with him." He explained. Westley and Brooke continued talking for about an hour until one of her father's friends came and warned her that her father was going crazy because he couldn't find her._

_ "Will you please come out there with me?" she asked._

_ "I would be delighted." He replied. He took her hand and led her outside to the ballroom._

_ "Darling!" her father called. "Where have you been?"_

_ "I've been chatting with Westley Goldman." She said._

_ "Very nice to meet you sir." Westley said and held out his hand._

_ "Very nice to meet you Westley." Dr. Walsh said warily. "So what do you do for a living?"_

_ "I'm a journalist." He replied. Dr. Walsh huffed and walked away. Brooke rolled her eyes. Westley pulled her over to dance with him along with other couples._

_ "I'm sorry about my dad." She said._

_ "It's no problem." He replied. "So do you have a boyfriend?"_

_ "No." she said._

_ "Anyone here that you like?" he asked._

_ "I think so." She said and put her head on his shoulder. "Thanks for saving me Daryl."_

_ "What?" he asked._

_ "You didn't think I wouldn't remember you did you?" she asked._

_ "When did you figure out it was me?" Daryl asked._

_ "When you stood up from the couch." She said. "Your eyes are what gave it away. I will say that you hid your country accent very well."_

_ "I'm more than glad to be your Dread Pirate Roberts." He replied. "You look beautiful, Brooke."_

_ "Thank you and you don't look too bad yourself." She said. "I like you in a suit." Daryl smirked. He knew that Brooke would probably kill someone before the end of the night so he decided to help her out. Someone had dropped their invitation outside so he picked it up. While the man who dropped it looked for it he gave it to the person at the front. He had stolen some of Brooke's concealer that she used when she had blemishes and he put it over the small mole on his face to cover it up. He had to change his voice just a little bit. Who knew it would be his eyes that would be the giveaway._

"Walkers!" Rick yelled. "Everyone hide under the cars!" Brooke hid under the Hummer with Rudy. Brooke could see T-Dog trying to get under a car but he cut his arm on the door. He slid to the ground and the walkers were even closer than they were before. One was closing in on T-Dog and she was about to climb out and help. She heard a squish and saw boots and soon knees. The person laid the walker down. She saw Daryl laying corpses on their bodies just in time for the horde to come by. Daryl saw her and she could see fear in his eyes, something that she didn't see often. She nodded under the care trying to assure everything would be okay. She heard Sophia yelp and run away. The walkers finally passed and Brooke climbed out from under the car.

"Brooke!" Shane called. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine Shane." She said. "Did anything get you?"

"No."

"Where's my baby?" Carol asked. They explained that Rick went into the woods to find her. Rick came back.

"I told her that I would draw the walkers away and that she would stay under a tree until I did. I told her to come back here when I did." He saw Brooke grabbing her quiver and bow. "Brooke, what are you doing."

"I'm sure we'll find something in there that will help us find her." She said. "I'm not about to give up on a little girl. Rudy could probably track her.

"I can probably track her too if that mutt doesn't work." Daryl said and grabbed his crossbow. Shane, Rick, Brooke, Daryl, Rudy and Glenn went into the woods. They walked around for a little bit. "I found something!" Daryl said.

"Those are her foot prints." Rick said. "Here Brooke see if Rudy can find anything." He handed her one of Sophia's hair bands. Rudy sniffed it and continued forward. They followed him until he stopped and went back to Brooke.

"She went to the left." Brooke said. "She may have seen more on the road. We could probably still track her."

"Alright, Shane and Glenn you take Rudy and go back to the group. We'll go on." Rick said and they parted ways. Glenn looked back at Brooke. He was so stupid. Why did he think that she and Daryl weren't together? More importantly why was she with Daryl in the first place?

"What you thinkin' about kid?" Shane asked. "Brooke?"

"No!" he said but Shane knew. "Yes. It's just, ugh! Why does she even want to be with Daryl?" Shane's eyes got wide.

"What?" He asked. Glenn grew pale and face palmed.

"You didn't know?"

"Uh, no!" he said. "Dixon's gonna die!" Shane vowed.

"Wait, Shane! Listen I heard them tell each other that they loved each other." He said. Shane stopped and ran a hand through his hair.

"Shit, come on! Let's get back to the group." He said and walked forward. Back to Rick, Brooke, and Daryl. They were in the woods and Daryl had just shot a walker with his crossbow.

"I think I see flesh in its teeth." Rick pointed out. "Do you think?"

"Only one way to find out." Brooke replied. "Give me your knife Rick." Rick did as she asked and she examined the walked. She started in its upper abdomen and cut down. "Gloves everyone." They all put gloves on. Brooke located the stomach and cut it open as well. She took a deep breath and tried not to vomit. She didn't want to give Daryl or Rick anymore leverage. She heard Rick vomit and closed her eyes.

"Lemme do it." Daryl said and went to the other side of the walker with Rick.

"The hoss sure had a big meal for lunch." Daryl said. Brooke turned away and walked over to some bushes and let it all out. She wiped her face with her arm and walked back over.

"You did that on purpose, you're gonna get an arrow in you if you keep it up." Brooke joked and Daryl smirked. He stuck his knife in there and pulled out a meaty lump.

"This gross bastard had a woodchuck for lunch." He said.

"At least we know." Rick said taking off the gloves. They continued on but fell into another dead end. "We'll continue tomorrow." They walked back to the camp and saw Carol standing there. Rick told her calmly that they didn't find Sophia.

"How could you just leave her there in the first place?" Carol asked almost yelling.

"Leaving her alone was my only option, Carol." Rick replied again calmly. "I thought she would be able to make it back."

"Well she didn't! Now she's out there all alone in the woods because of you!" Carol yelled. Shane saw Brooke's eyes. Pure anger. She had always been protective of Rick and Shane because they were her boys. They called her their personal pit bull.

"Because of Rick?" Brooke asked in the background. "Tell me who went back out in the woods to look for her? What were you doing when we were out in the woods cuttin' up dead sons of bitches for your daughter? You just stood here and cried! I know you're upset that Sophia ran away but you need to help her and actually do somethin' besides laundry! You need to look for her instead of bitchin' and blaming everyone else around you!" Brooke yelled. She saw Carol close back up into her shell. "We're going back out in the morning to search for her if you would like to come along." Brooke ended and walked away to check on T-Dog. Carol stood there in silence while everyone else watched Brooke walk away. "You don't mess with my boys." She told Carol quietly but loud enough so Lori could hear. She said it so chillingly that Lori got chills and shifted her weight.


	15. Chapter 15:What 'Cha Got Doc?

Chapter 15: What' Cha Got Doc?

Brooke went through her medi-kits that she had found to see if there was anything T-Dog could use. She saw some painkillers but that wouldn't really help him out a whole lot. She didn't have that much disinfectant left but she used it anyway. It wasn't nearly enough to help him out.

"Hey Little Walsh." T-Dog called.

"What's up Teddy?" she asked.

"What was all that yellin' that you were doin' out there for?" he asked but cringed when she put disinfectant on his cut.

"Oh nothing." She said.

"Didn't sound like nothing." He replied.

"It's the personal pit bull." Shane said. Brooke half smirked and was done with T-Dog. She walked out of the RV with Shane. "I can't believe you said that, girly." He said.

"Well it's true and no one is messin' with my boys." She sighed. "I feel bad for her but she needs to actually do something to help Sophia out. She couldn't help her out when Ed was beating them but she can now."

"I know." Shane said and kissed her temple. "Just watch your temper." He started to walk away.

"Shane!" she called.

"Yeah."

"Please don't leave." She said.

"How did you-" Shane began.

"Carl overheard you talking to Lori." She answered. "I know it's hard but believe it or not I actually care about you. If Lori ever does anything to you let me know. You may not be able to lay a finger on her but I sure as hell can." Shane chuckled and ran his hand through his hair.

"Come here, baby girl!" he said and gave her a hug. "So you and Dixon, huh?"

"How did you-" she said.

"Glenn overheard you two this morning telling each other that you love each other." He replied. "I was gonna kill him until I heard love. How long?"

"We started dating a week before the outbreak." She said.

"Wow, you two have awful timing!" he laughed. They walked back to the group and helped them set up the tents for the night. Daryl went inside their tent but Brooke stayed outside with Carol. They sat across from each other with the fire in between them.

"Carol I'm sorry about the way I acted today." She said. Carol just nodded. "I'm going to do everything I can to help find her." She said and walked away to her tent.

"You sure you ain't gonna yell at me, darlin?" Daryl asked.

"Oh shut up." She said playfully. "Just go back to sleep, I'm tired." He snickered and fell back asleep. The next morning they woke up and got ready. She wore the same thing she did yesterday because of her new rule. She had made it a couple of days after she got to the quarry. She would wear each outfit twice until laundry day so she would still have clean clothes by the end of the week. They walked out and organized a search party. Carl begged to go and was successful. The entire group except T-Dog , Dale, and Rudy went into the woods. They soon came across a tent.

"I'll go check it out." Daryl said. He went ahead and opened the flap of the tent. "Nothin' in here but a rotting bastard." Daryl reached and found the dead man's gun. He took it and the group started to talk about where to go next.

"Everyone shut-up!" Brooke ordered. "Do you hear that?"

"I hear bells." Carl said. They ran towards it and saw a church. Daryl, Rick, and Shane busted open the doors and stood frozen to see walkers sitting in the pews. The walkers noticed them and slowly got up. An arrow shot past their heads and went into a walker who had on a white dress in between the eyes.

"Well, don't just stand there with your mouths open." Brooke mumbled and they quickly got to business. Brooke and Glenn went over to a control box.

"It's an automated sound system." Glenn sighed. Brooke looked back at the massacre and crossed her chest.

"Damn it!" Daryl said and looked at the large crucifix at the front. "Hey JC, you takin' any requests?" Carol go on her knees and started to pray. Brooke grabbed Glenn's hand and they bowed their heads. They prayed with Carol and said prayers of their own. Brooke walked over to Andrea. She had been having a tough time lately with Amy's death and the fact that she almost committed suicide.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?" Brooke asked. Andrea nodded. "I know what it feels like. You lose someone and all you wanna do is end yourself. I've been there before. I tried to commit suicide once but I chickened out after the first cut. There are gonna be days where life is just absolute hell but that's not all I can guarantee you. You will, one day, wake up and the pain is gone."

"But how do you get there?" Andrea asked.

"You just come to the conclusion that one life maybe over but yours isn't." she said and Andrea thanked her. The group decided to split up. Rick, Shane, Brooke and Carl would go one direction and the rest would go in the other. Rick said a quick prayer before they left. They went into the woods and saw a deer. Brooke smiled at it and Rick gasped. Carl, and his mischievous self, went out to maybe try and pet it. They heard a gunshot ring through their ears. They saw the deer slump to the ground but that didn't matter. Carl slumped to the ground as well.

"Carl!" the men yelled. Brooke got their first,

"Handsome? Are you there? Come on honey!" she said and he moaned. Rick picked him up as an overweight man came running.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't see him! Herschel will be able to help him! Come with me!" they didn't question and ran. "Herschel!" the overweight man screamed. An older man came out of the house and gasped.

"Come on bring him in!" he yelled. "I'm Dr. Herschel Greene." They all introduced themselves quickly and laid Carl down on a bed. They left Herschel to see what he needed to do.

"Oh God what about Lori?" Rick asked in horror. "She needs to know! I don't even know how she'll handle it!"

"When you were gone Lori became the toughest woman I know." Shane said. "Next to Brooke of course." Rick chuckled. "She stayed strong for Carl and I know she can stay strong now."

"I can go tell her." A young woman offered. "My name's Maggie." Rick nodded and told her where they were. She accepted, got on a horse, and went to go find them.

"He'll need full surgery." Herschel said. "They had all the supplies at the FEMA shelter in the high school but it's been overrun."

"I can go and get the supplies you need." Shane offered.

"Do you know what it looks like?" Herschel asked and gave him a list. Shane shook his head.

"I do." Brook admitted while donating her blood to her nephew. Thank God she was O negative. "I can go once I give some of my blood."

"I'll go too." Otis said. They were about to leave in one of the trucks and Brooke went to Rick.

"We'll get the things." She said and kissed him on the cheek. "I promise." They went to the truck and drove away. Brooke looked back and saw Lori running into the house with Maggie. They arrived at the high school and indeed it was filled with walkers. Brooke saw some flares.

"I have an idea." She smirked. The boys looked back at her and Shane smiled.

"What 'cha got, Doc?" Shane asked.

Hours had passed and they still hadn't returned with the supplies. Lori and Rick paced in a small room.

"If they don't come back soon I'll have to perform surgery without any of the things I need." Herschel said. Glenn, Dale, T-Dog, and Rudy were there and they all worried about the little group that could. They heard a car door slam and they all looked out the window. They saw Shane, and only Shane limping towards the house with a couple of bags. They all ran outside to join him. Jimmy took the bags and brought them upstairs to Herschel.

"Where's Otis?" Beth asked. Shane just looked down at the ground and Beth started to cry.

"Where's Brooke?" Rick asked. Shane looked up and he could see tears in his deputies' eyes. "Oh my God!" Rick started to cry and even Lori started to weep as well.

"Little Walsh is dead?" T-Dog asked. He sat back in a chair in shock.

"Oh God, who's gonna tell Daryl?" Glenn asked as he put both hands on his head. It was complete silence except for the sobs that came from many.

"What's goin' on?" Daryl asked from behind. "Is Carl okay?" Shane and Rick looked at each other. Carol and Andrea went to Lori who told them what happened. They both gasped. Andrea openly cried and Carol teared up. "What the hell is goin' on?" he asked even more frustrated. Shane walked over to him.

"Brooke's dead." He said. "She made me leave her there so that I would live and… and." Shane couldn't even finish his sentence. He ran both hands through his hair and broke down. Daryl stood there looking at the ground. His bottom jaw was clenched as he tried to hold back tears. He let one fall down, then another, and another. He finally let them all lose but didn't make a sound. He just stood there looking at the ground and holding the strawberry charm bracelet she left in their tent this morning. He didn't even tell her he loved her when they left the church. He threw the bracelet to the ground and ran his hands over his face.

"Oh God!" He finally said. "Why did you leave her behind?" he asked Shane in a blood curdling scream.

"She made me go! She made me go so I could save Carl!" Shane wept. Daryl picked the bracelet back up and cleaned the dirt off of it.

"I…I… oh why did it have to happen to her?" he yelled. "Why to her? She was the only person for me. She was the only person who made me feel like a person. She's the only person I've ever loved. Why her?" he continued to weep and Shane went over to comfort him. "I loved her so much, Shane."

"I know you did." He said and put his arm around his shoulder. They both cried. Rick went over to pull them into the house but he couldn't hold it in either. The three men that Brooke knew would never cry in front of anyone cried openly for the first time in their lives. They were out there for thirty minutes trying to just take in what had happened.

"I could use some help here." A frail voice said in the background. The group looked behind and saw a girl was covered in blood and guts. Her high, tight, pony tail was now lopped sided and tangled. She carried a pole with an electric chainsaw on one end and another on the other end. Her blue tank top was now a rusty brown color. Her boots were soaked with blood and her jeans were brown as well. Brooke looked almost unrecognizable.


	16. Chapter 16: Buttercup

Chapter 16: Buttercup

"You guys ready?" Brooke asked. They were still sitting in the truck in the parking lot of the high school.

"Ready." They said.

"Let's go." Brooke said. They lit the flares that Brooke had found and threw them all over the parking lot to distract the parking lot. The door was cleared in a very short amount of time. They grabbed their things and ran inside the medical trailer.

"Good job baby girl!" Shane said and patted her on the back.

"Thanks! Now these are the things we need. Otis you grab those two things on the table to your left and Shane and I will load up on this table." They did as instructed and filled up their back packs. They opened the door of the trailer and saw the walkers waiting for them. "Oh shit! What do we do now?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"Um, uh…" Shane stuttered and looked at the high school. "There's only one thing we can do, make a run towards the high school. Once we get in there we can figure out an escape plan. Ready… GO!" Shane ordered and they ran inside the high school. They closed the door behind them and sighed.

"We made it." Otis said they looked behind them. A horde of dozens were in the hall way.

"Over here!" Brooke yelled and ran up some stairs. She shot some of the walkers on the stairs and pushed forward. She saw a closed door at the top of the stairs in the hallway. She heard Shane scream in the hallway and ran back. "Shane!" she yelled. Three walkers were about to munch on him but Otis came with his gun and shot them. "Come on we don't have time! Help me break down the door!" The men ran up and Shane rammed shoulder first into the door. Shane took his shot gun and shot two walkers down. Brooke and Otis ran into the room and slammed the door behind them.

"Is everyone okay?" Otis asked.

"Yeah I am. Are you Shane?" Brooke answered.

"Yeah." He panted. The room was still under construction and the walkers that Shane had killed were wearing their work clothes. "Alright, we need to find a way to get back to the truck." He said as he looked out the window. They could hear the scratches at the door and the slumping of walkers against the door. There were so many it shook the door.

"Oh God! It's not going to hold." Brooke realized. She thought for a moment while she bit her bottom lip and ran a hand through her hair. "We could wait it out."

"No we can't. Carl needs the stuff now! We can't wait it out we have to leave soon if not now." Shane said.

"We could jump out the window." Otis suggested. "We jump out, climb over the wall, and run to the car."

"It's risky but it might just work." Brooke said.

"Let's do it!" Shane said. "Everyone get ready. We need to leave soon, it's about to get dark."

"We need to wait for the rotting freaks down there to move." Brooke said. "We just need to stay quiet until they leave." They waited for an hour and they knew they had to leave. Otis went first and jumped down successfully. He hopped over the wall and stood guard for Shane. The walkers started to get attracted and began to come over to the jumping zone. "Go Shane!" she motioned. He crawled out the window and fell awkwardly on his leg, injuring it. He stood on the wall in front of it.

"Come on Brooke!" Shane yelled but the walkers were already where she needed to jump.

"I can't!" she screamed in horror. She knew what she needed to do. "Take this!" she threw them her back pack and Shane caught it. "Go!"

"No I'm not leaving you here!" Shane yelled back.

"You have to! Go save Carl! I love you Shane!" she cried.

"I love you too!" he yelled.

"Tell Daryl I love him!" she cried and went back inside. The boys ran through the parking lot. Brooke could hear the gun shots and heard Otis scream in pain. "I'm not going to die! Not today!" she told herself. She knew her bow and arrow wouldn't work against this many walkers. She looked around desperately and saw some duct tape. She looked behind her and saw two electric chainsaws. She smirked to herself and looked above the window. She put her feet on the edge of the window and put her hands on the curtain rod. She pulled all of her weight on it and pulled down with all of her might. She heard a crack in the wall and she fell on her back. She winced in pain but soon got up. She pulled the curtain rod apart to the length she preferred. She got one chainsaw and duct taped it to one end and did the same to the other end. The things ran on huge batteries that she saw on one of the work tables. She grabbed a large drawstring bag and filled it with the batteries. She could hear the walkers outside of the door. She took a deep breath. "I really hope that video game wasn't lying about this weapon." She whispered. She said a quick prayer and started both chainsaws after she changed the batteries. She took a deep breath and opened the door.

Arms immediately came over to grab her but she cut them off. She started to make her way out in the hallway. She heard her chainsaws as they cut through necks, heads, and other body parts. Blood splashed on her face, arms, and her entire body. She fought with all her might not to throw up. She spun in a circle and took down as many walkers as she could. The crunching and squishing of the chaos she was creating was enough to make her keep going. As long as she knew she was causing damage, her adrenaline would keep pumping through her body and keep her alive. She screamed and ran down the stairs. She could hear them as some fell down after her. She went to the front door and kicked it back shut with her foot. She was surrounded on the outside. She twirled her weapon like a baton with both hands, making a huge gap for her to escape through. She ran quickly and saw Otis being fed on by multiple walkers. His back pack was no longer on his body but she saw his leg that had been untouched. She saw blood oozing out of a wound. A bullet whole.

"That crazy bastard shot him." Brooke cursed. She ran forward to try and see if maybe the truck was still forward and the walkers weren't too far behind her. "Damn it!" she yelled. She turned around and the walkers were only a few feet in front of her. She knew the chainsaws weren't going to take that much more. She gave one more final scream of frustration and went forward towards them. She swung at them and saw the decapitation of many. Two tried to grab her head so she ducked and cut off their legs. She continued her violence until she was finally done. She could hear more trying to break down the door of the school and she freaked. She quickly changed the batteries in her weapon, turned it off, and ran on the road. She looked around to see if she could remember anything but couldn't stop due to the road blocks of walkers. She was about to give up hope when she saw a bulldozer on the side of the road. "The house isn't much farther from here!" she looked behind her and most of the walkers lost interest but some were still chasing after her. She saw some more things she took notice to on the way to the high school and saw a mailbox. "Greene Family Farm." She laughed hysterically. She killed the three walkers that were following her by smashing their head with the curtain rod. She ran up the dirt road but could feel her body about to give out. She slowed down to a walk and saw hope. She saw the lights of the house that were blurred. She walked up to see Daryl, Rick, and Shane in front of the steps weeping. The rest were on the porch trying to console one another, including the Greene family. She was out of breath and her voice was raspy. "I could use some help here." She said in a frail voice. The men turned and looked at her. She looked down at herself. Her clothes were brown and her arms were covered in chunks of guts.

"Brooke?" Daryl asked in disbelief and like the first time he saw her at the quarry, he began to jog to her but it soon turned to a full on sprint. He threw his arms around her and he could feel her body shudder in sobs. "Oh God! I thought you were dead! Are you bit?" he wept.

"No." she felt her knees give out but he caught her. "You will not believe what I've been through tonight." She sighed and felt her body collapse and he gently went to the ground so she could relax. "I'm so tired, I just want to go home." She said. Shane and Rick hurried over and saw her. She closed her eyes and passed out. She woke up the next morning in a cute bedroom. She looked down and saw she was completely clean of the gore on her body. Her hair was washed and brushed out. She saw a set of her clean clothes on the floor. She scooted up so the head board would support her back and held the sheets against her chest. Like the time Daryl admitted her into the hospital he was asleep and waiting for her to wake up. Her eyes got wide. "Carl." She said.

"Don't worry about him, he's just fine." Herschel said walking in.

"Dr. Greene I'm so sorry about Otis!" she wept. He patted her back.

"It's okay. Shane told us that Otis sacrificed himself so Carl would live." Herschel said. "He died a hero." Brooke knew that Shane had lied and he was so going to get it later.

"So, Carl's okay?" she asked.

"The surgery was a success and he's healing." He answered.

"Thank you so much." She said wiping her tears away. Herschel nodded and said she was good to go. He gave her some water to drink and she thanked him once again. She heard a yawn and saw Daryl waking up.

"Brooke!" he cried and crashed into her. "I was so worried!"

"I was too." She said. He gave her a kiss.

"I love you so much Brooke." He whispered in her ear.

"I love you too." She replied. She moved her arms and winced. "Damn, their so sore!" she cursed.

"I'll help you get dressed." Daryl said. Once she was dressed she walked into Carl's room. She wore a black t-shirt with some jeans and a new pair of combat boots. Her others squished with blood every time she walked.

"Hey handsome." She cooed.

"Aunt Brooke?" he asked.

"Yeah it's me." She said. "How do you feel?"

"Tired." He said. She kissed his fore head and let him go back to resting. Shane was waiting down stairs with his new hair cut. More like scalped. He had shaven his entire head. He looked over and saw her. He stood straight up and hugged her.

"I should've never left you there." He cursed himself. "I made you go through all that." He started to cry and she comforted him. She saw him in the state he was and decided to talk with him about Otis another day. She was glad that her brother was able to survive and save Carl. Brooke and Shane walked outside and she was immediately bombarded with the survivors. Everyone question how she got out of there alive.

"I used this." She said. "Daryl, where's my weapon?" he pointed to the side of the house. She picked it up and gripped it. It had been recently cleaned. Even though her arms were sore she didn't mind to demonstrate. She would just try and refrain from using heavy objects for a while. Jimmy the farmhand put two hay bales out in front of her. She turned them both on and cringed from the dreaded sound. She used some of the techniques from the other night and cut up the hay bales. She cut them up into pieces.

"Thanks." Jimmy said. "Now I can feed the cows." Brooke smiled and laid it on the ground. Maggie checked on her and walked away. She could see Glenn looking at Maggie and chuckled. Rick came running up and hugged her. He gave her a friendly peck on the lips.

"Oh thank God!" he said. The rest helped out around the farm for the day. Brooke helped Maggie take care of the horses. They talked about the horses they've owned. Brooke had one on her grandfather's farm. A Clydesdale named Buttercup from the Princess Bride. Dinner was called and Brooke ate a peach. She knew she wouldn't be able to eat a full meal for a long time. She was still worn out from her adventure the other night and went into her and Daryl's tent. She couldn't go to sleep and she just sat there on the ground. Daryl walked in and zipped up the tent for the night.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I'm just a little shocked I guess." She replied. "I can't go to sleep without thinking about it. The sounds, the images, the feeling. It doesn't go away." She buried her face in her hands. "I can't even close my eyes without thinking about it."

"Hey, hey it's okay." Daryl said as he put his arm around her. "It's over and you're alive. You made it out of there. You will not believe how miserable I was when Shane told me you were dead. I kicked myself for not telling you I loved you that morning." His eyes got wide and pulled her bracelet out of his pocket. He put it on her arm and she looked up at him. "I don't ever want to lose you."

"I don't want to lose you either Daryl." She said. He kissed her and they soon made love. They fell asleep for a little while but Brooke soon had a nightmare. It was going to be rough trying to get over it.


	17. Chapter 17: Home

Chapter 17: Home

"No!" Brooke whined in her sleep. "No please! I just want to go home!" she started to cry.

"Brooke! Brooke, wake up!" Daryl shook her shoulders lightly and stopped as soon as she opened her eyes. Her body shook by itself as she woke up. Daryl held her close and she broke down. Daryl never thought about the emotional toll it would take on Brooke.

"I'm so sorry." She wept quietly. Daryl shushed her and she buried her face into his neck. "I just want to go home. That's all I want. I want a place to call home where it's safe."

"Hey, we're safe here." He said.

"But this isn't home. Home is back in King County with the coffee shop and Dad." She sniffed. "Home is where we know that it's not just safe but loving and accepting. Not fighting everyday just to stay alive. This is not home."

"You know why we can't go back." He said and she nodded. "I've never had a real home before and you know that. The most I feel at home is when I'm with you, Brooke. When I fell in love with you all I could imagine was us together. Now that we are together, I think about our future. Before all this shit happened I actually had a dream about what home looked like for us. I know one day we'll be able to have that. Maybe not now but soon."

"I'm just so tired of everything. I know we'll be on the move again soon and we don't even know if Fort Benning is a possibility. I'm just so worried about everything. Sophia is still out there, Carl just got freaking shot, and there seems like there's no end to this thing." She said. "I know I need to be strong but last night just made me realize how bad things are."

"I know. I don't blame you for bein' tired of everything. I'm worried sick about Sophia and you know I am. I'm going out to look for her tomorrow. I think everyone would be okay if you just took a day off tomorrow. Brooke," he lifted her head up to look into her eyes. "I know we can get through this." He leaned in and kissed her.

"What did home look like?" She asked as she rested her head on his bicep and chest.

"What?"

"In your dream. What did home look like?" she asked. He chuckled a little bit and started to describe his dream.

_It was night time in a small neighborhood. It was spring and was just the right temperature. Lightning bugs were roaming around outside in the backyard of a gray panel, one story house, with a black roof, white edging, white doors, and white windows. The house looked small on the outside but it was the perfect size for the family on the inside. A white fence surrounded the backyard and a garage sat next to the house with the same styling. It had a blue Prius, and a newer pickup truck in it. It had two steps leading to the front door and a wrap around deck. There were flowers growing in the front of the house and a couple of trees in the backyard. The yard was the perfect and healthy shade of green. A golden retriever roamed around the house. A little girl who was three roamed around the kitchen with a mason jar in her hands impatiently. There were tiny holes in the top but were so small that they could barely be seen. She had long, reddish-brownish hair, and dark blue eyes. She had a beauty mark on her left cheek bone. She was wearing a pink and yellow, plaid, dress that had little ruffles on the bottom. She had small little pink shoes on. She had pale skin with a couple of freckles on her arms._

_ "Daddy!" she called in a small voice. "Are they ready yet?" Daryl came from behind a corner with a mason jar in his hands. He was wearing a black, mid-sleeve, t-shirt, with jeans, and a pair of hunting boots as usual. He was 36 but looked younger._

_ "Gina you need to patient. Momma's patchin' up your brother." He said._

_ "All the lightnin' bugs will be back at home when they are done though, Daddy! It's almost their bedtime!" Gina explained._

_ "Regina Amelia Dixon you have the wildest imagination you know that?" he smirked._

_ "Is that good?" she asked._

_ "That's very good!" he assured and picked her up. She gave him a kiss on the cheeks with her full lips and rested her head on his shoulder while holding on to the mason jar with her arms._

_ "Alright, he's good to go!" Brooke said. She wore a pretty, floral print, blue dress, with a tiny, gold belt around her waist, and a pair of gold flats. Her hair was long and flowed behind her. She was 33 but didn't look a day past 25. "He scraped his knee pretty badly." A little boy who was six walked behind her. He had dark brown hair that was shorter, light blue eyes just like Daryl's, and skin that was just a little tan but not too pale. He wore some cargo shorts, a red t-shirt, with a rolled up, white and orange plaid shirt over it. He wore some brown sandals and had a Captain America band aid on his right knee. _

_ "I didn't cry either Dad!" he smiled proudly. He had some teeth missing but they were growing back. "Where's my jar?" he asked._

_ "It's over here." Brooke said and went to go get it._

_ "Lemme have it!" he demanded excitedly._

_ "Westley Andrew Dixon." Brooke said in a pointed tone._

_ "Please." Westley said._

_ "Good." Daryl said. He could feel Gina bounce in his arms._

_ "Alright he's all fixed up. Can we please go outside now?" she asked._

_ "Yeah let's go!...Please?" Westley enthused._

_ "Alright let's go!" Brooke yelled and they cheered. She slid open the glass door that led to the outside._

_ "Come on, Eddie!" Daryl called and whistled. Westley followed his father's example and called the golden retriever. He couldn't quite whistle yet but he mimicked the sound. Daryl sat Gina down and ruffled his son's hair. The dog ran trotted out and grabbed its toy._

_ "So how do we catch the lightin' bugs, Momma?" Gina asked._

_ "Alright so as soon as you see a lightning bug you open your jar and swoop it in there." Brooke demonstrated he motion. "You quickly close the jar and see if you caught it."_

_ "Piece of cake!" Westley said. He ran out into the yard and went on the hunt. He laughed and Gina ran after him to catch some more. The two watched their kids play and look inside their jars._

_ "Come on, let's get in there!" Brooke said._

_ "Just don't knock down the kids!" Daryl laughed and they joined the little ones. Westley was able to catch a lot and put his jar down on the patio table._

_ "I can't reach them!" Gina complained and reached her small arms up to try and swoop some in. She grunted in frustration. Westley came over and gave her a boost by picking her up so she could catch some. Brooke felt arms wrap around her and she was lifted up._

_ "Ah!" she yelled and giggled._

_ "You're missin' the idea, darlin'!" he laughed. "You're supposed to catch 'em!" He stumbled backwards and the Eddie tripped him. They fell back on the grass and laughed. "Damn mutt!"_

_ "What did you just say?" Gina asked. Daryl's went pale and Brooke lost it._

_ "I said dang! I said dang Gina!" he said._

_ "No you didn't you said damn." Westley corrected._

_ "Just don't ever say that word!" Brooke warned wiping away the tears. "I thought we would have to worry about Merle teachin' them those words." She smiled._

_ "It just slipped." Daryl shrugged and helped his wife up. She planted a small peck on his lips and went over to the patio table to see what they caught. _

_ "I won!" Westley cheered._

_ "Alright, now we have to let them go." Brooke said._

_ "Why?" Gina asked. "I've already named mine."_

_ "Because they need to be with their families. Don't you think their parents would miss them?" Daryl asked. Gina pouted but quickly grabbed her jar. The rest followed. _

_ "Alright on three we open our jars and say goodbye." Brooke said. "One, two, three!" they all twisted open their jars and set them free._

_ "Bye Ariel, Jasmine, Belle, Mulan, Tiana, and Rapunzel!" Gina called out. They walked back inside and the kids were given a bath. It was eight o'clock and their bed time. Gina went to sleep in her pink room with her stuffed Minnie Mouse. Westley fell asleep with his stuffed Captain America in his light blue room. Brooke and Daryl walked out into the living room and sat on their cream colored, suede couch. He put his arm around her and she put her legs across his._

_ "I love you." Daryl said._

_ "I love you too." Brooke said. He kissed her and they heard a gag behind them._

_ "Go to bed, Westley!" They said in unison and they heard his feet go back into his room. He shut his door and they chuckled._

Daryl finished his description and was playing with a little bit of Brooke's hair.

"Okay, lay it on me!" he smirked knowing it was the cheesiest thing in the world.

"I will." She said and gave him another kiss on the lips. She snuggled back into him. "I loved it."

"So did I." he admitted and nuzzled into her hair.

"I love you." She said and closed her eyes.

"I love you too." He said and closed his eyes as well. With that sweet thought of home they were both able to sleep. That one shred of hope gave them what they needed. Something to look forward to.


	18. Chapter 18: Friends and Roses

Chapter 18: Friends and Roses

They woke up the next morning after a peaceful sleep and got ready. Brooke wore a light pink v-neck the rest was the usual attire. They walked over to where they were having the service and Herschel said a quick prayer.

"You were the last one with him," Patricia wept to Shane. "Please I need to hear." Shane sighed and ran a hand over his newly shaven head. Apparently he wasn't used to not having his dark, curly, locks. Brooke could see fear and panic in his eyes.

"Otis and I were running in the parking lot. I was still crying from leaving Brooke behind but he promised me everything would be okay. The walkers were closing in and he passed me his back pack. HE told me to make sure Carl was alive and he distracted the walkers. He gave his life for me and Carl. Maybe even Brooke. He was a hero and died a hero." Shane lied. They said their final goodbyes to Otis. Now their attention was on finding Sophia. Most of the men, and Brooke, were around a map.

"We could try over here and search around this creek. She's a smart girl, she knows she needs to be near some water." Brooke said and traced the map.

"I'm pretty sure that there was a house over here. I could check that out later on today." Daryl said. Herschel came from behind them.

"Listen, I just want you to know that as long as you're on my farm I don't want any guns around here." He said politely. Rick and Brooke could see Shane's face.

"Of course Herschel." Brooke said. "It's the least we can do."

"We can absolutely do that." Rick said.

"I can go to the pharmacy that's not too far from here and get some things we need, Dad." Maggie volunteered.

"I don't want you to go alone." Herschel said. Rick saw Glenn's face light up.

"Glenn could go with her." Rick said. "Don't worry he's actually saved my life a couple of times." Herschel nodded.

"Alright, why don't you go make a list of what we need?" Herschel suggested to Maggie. She nodded and walked away. They talked about the plan a little more and they walked away. Brooke walked over to grab her bow and quiver and felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist.

"What I said yesterday about you takin' a day off, I meant it." Daryl said softly. She turned around and put her arms around his neck.

"Listen, I have to go back out there sooner or later. I might as well get it over with. I won't take my stick of doom I'll just take this and a knife." She said. He gave her a concerned look. "I'll be fine." She gave him a quick kiss and began to walk away but he grabbed her hand. She looked back.

"You're comin' with me then." He said. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Alright I will." She said. He gave her another firm kiss and let her go. "I'll go get some things we'll need for the trip." She walked to the house and saw Lori and Andrea with smiles on their faces. "What's up?"

"Oh nothing." Andrea said and Lori giggled. Brooke's face got red and continued up the steps.

"Oh come on! It's cute!" Lori said. Brooke smirked and chuckled. "Is he a good kisser?" she asked and started making kissing noises. Brooke turned around and playfully smacked Lori's arm. Andrea giggled.

"We just want to know." Andrea said smiling. Brooke knew this was just a big sister technique. Amber had told her about her older sisters all the time and they always did stuff like this.

"If you must know he is a very good kisser." Brooke smirked. "He's good at other stuff too." The girls lost it and laughed a little harder. With all the laughing and giggling it reminded Brooke of when Becky and Amber found out that she and Daryl were together.

_It was the day after Meemaw's funeral. Brooke was meeting Becky and Amber a café near the mall. They would always sit and catch up real quick before heading out for a day with the girls. Brooke walked up in a gray dress with white polka dots and red shoes. Becky was wearing blue dress that was short in the front, but long and flowy in the back. Amber wore a white mid sleeve shirt and a black pencil skirt. Brooke saw them already at a table and walked a little faster._

_ "Hey!" Brooke greeted and sat down._

_ "Hey Brooke." Becky said a little warily._

_ "What is it?" Brooke asked._

_ "What is that thing on your collar bone?" Amber asked. Brooke looked down and saw that her dress and shifted a bit. She made sure she covered the purple mark with concealer but it didn't go as well as she hoped. She quickly fixed her dress._

_ "Oh it's nothing." Brooke shrugged. The corners of Becky's lips curled up._

_ "Is that a hickey?" she asked almost too loudly. Brooke's eyes got wide and she looked around to see if anyone had heard._

_ "Becky!" she warned._

_ "Is it?" Amber asked. Brooke sighed and ran a hand through her hair._

_ "Yes, it's a hickey." She admitted softly. The other two laughed._

_ "When did you get it?" Becky asked._

_ "You do know that we are out of college and not in high school, right?" Brooke asked hoping to change the subject. Her plan failed and the ladies leaned in for her to spill. "Yesterday." She grumbled._

_ "Wait, yesterday?" Amber asked. "But yesterday was Meemaw's funeral and you stayed at the beach house…" Amber trailed off and realized what happened. "Daryl?" she asked in a high pitched voice. Becky looked at Amber and back at Brooke. Her mouth was open but quickly covered it up. Brooke nodded and the girls squealed. That got everyone's attention._

_ "Well what happened between you two?" Becky asked._

_ "Merle went back home and we stayed. I guess he could hear me crying in my room because he came in. I told him what I've told y'all. You know, that it was my fault. He told me it wasn't and I said I must have seemed so selfish. He said no and told me I was perfect. He said it again and then he told me he loved me." Brooke explained._

_ "Oh my God!" Amber bounced in her seat._

_ "Well, what did you say?" Becky asked slamming her hands on the table begging for answers._

_ "I told him that I loved him too." Brooke smiled. The girls squealed and giggled even more. "Then he kissed me."_

_ "Okay, how was the kiss?" Becky asked._

_ "It was very romantic and amazing." Brooke blushed. The girls gave her a certain look that she had given them before and she nodded._

_ "Oh my God!" Amber said. "So what happens now? Are you two together?"_

_ "He asked me on a date for tonight." Brooke said. "And truth be told I'm so nervous." Becky and Amber smiled at each other._

_ "We need to find a dress for you to wear tonight." Becky said._

_ "I always do that when Eric and I go on dates." Amber said. She had just gotten married in India to that veterinarian that was in her class. They had just opened a new practice together. They stood up and rushed Brooke over to the nearest Nordstrom._

Brooke smiled at her memory and missed Amber and Becky. She walked inside to get some water and some food for them to take with them. She saw Herschel and quickly went over to him.

"Herschel?" She began. "Is it okay if I take some food and water with me and Daryl when we go out to look for that little girl?"

"Of course." He smiled warmly. "So you're a doctor?"

"Yes sir." She answered. "And you're a veterinarian?"

"Yes m'am." He replied. She sighed and smirked. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah it's just my best friend and her husband owned a practice." She sighed.

"What are their names?" he asked.

"Amber and Eric Stone." She replied. Herschel smiled.

"They are delightful people! I loved to go and visit their practice! You knew them?" he asked.

"Amber and I have been best friends since we were six years old." She smiled.

"I recognize your picture with a young woman named…Becky I believe is what her name is." He said.

"Yep, that's us the three musketeers!" She said and Herschel chuckled. "Thanks for saving Carl." She said.

"No problem. You be safe out there Dr. Walsh." He said.

"Please, call me Brooke." She said and he nodded. She walked out of the house and saw Shane sitting on the front porch. "Hey Shane." She said softly.

"Hey baby girl." He replied.

"What's up, you seem a little down?" she asked. He shook his head and placed his hands on it.

"Lori is just so confusing!" he said. "She wants me to leave her alone, so I said I'll leave. Now that we've saved Carl she wants me to stay! It's like she didn't expect me to save Carl in his time of need because of her!"

"Lori is a very complicated woman." She said. "She's always been fickle but I think she does want you to stay."

"Do you think she loves me, Brooke?" he asked. His brown eyes were empty and lost. Brooke pursed her lips and looked down at her hands that were grabbing each other. She took his hands and held them. She looked at him.

"Shane, I think she does love you."She saw his face light up. "But, not that way. She loves you because you took care of her in her time of need. She loves you because you are a friend." She saw all the hope drain from his body. "Shane, she loves Rick. It may not be shown all the time but I know that she loves him. I know that you love him. You need to tell him what happened before everything goes to shit." She advised. Shane nodded slowly. He grabbed his sister and hugged the tightest he had ever had.

"Thanks Brooke." He said and walked off. He meant it, he really was thankful. Brooke could always read people like a book. He knew she was right about everything she had just said. Shane knew that he needed to tell Rick but he just couldn't. For some reason though, he still thought that Lori truly loved him.

"Shane!" she called and ran after him. He turned around. "I know about what really happened back at the high school."

"What?" he asked. "What do you mean?"

"Walkers can't shoot." She said. "Especially with so much aim to go for the leg. I know you did it to save Carl but it was wrong no matter what. I'm not going to tell anyone."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because you're my brother. Herschel would kick you off the farm if he knew. It's also not my truth to tell." She said and was soon grabbed up in another hug. She kissed his cheek and said good bye. She caught up with Daryl and they left the farm. They walked for a little while though the woods until the approached an abandoned house. Brooke got an arrow ready and drew her bow. Daryl had his crossbow ready and kicked open the door. They didn't see any walkers.

"Hey look at this." Daryl called. He opened a closet and saw some food on the ground. He also saw a small bed. Brooke sighed and dug deeper to see if there was any evidence that Sophia had been in there.

"Nothing else besides this." She sighed.

"Do you think it might be her?" he asked.

"I would say most likely but why would she leave? I don't see any walkers and she had even more food in the back." She questioned.

"Well she ain't here so we better keep on movin'." He said. She could tell he was upset. For some reason he had made it his mission to find Sophia.

"Hey," she said and pulled him back to face her. "We'll find her. She can't be too far from here." She said and gave him a quick peck on the lips. He smirked sadly and she cupped his face with her hands. "We'll find her." She said again. He took her hand and they walked outside.

"Would you look at that." He said and pulled her towards two white flowers.

"What are they?" she asked.

"Cherokee Roses." He stated. "Do you know the story?"

"No, I've never heard of it." She replied. He told her about the legend and she smiled. He picked them both from the ground. He broke the stem of one of them and placed it behind her ear. She smiled and he gave her a kiss on the cheek. "So if they're here that means she can't be too far." She said and he had hope again.

"Come on, we need to keep goin'." He said and they walked on. They didn't see any sign of Sophia anywhere and it was almost dark. He grunted and they turned around to go back. He looked over a Brooke who still had the flower in her hair. Her hair was wavy from not having a straightener anymore but it still looked beautiful. She had a little dirt here and there but she somehow managed to stay clean. He sighed and kept on walking.

"We'll try the creek tomorrow." She said. He grabbed a bottle from the fence outside of the farm and put some of his water in it. He placed the rose and walked to where Carol was staying. He explained the story once more to her.

"It's a Cherokee Rose. The story is that when American soldiers were moving Indians off their land on the Trail of Tears, the Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much 'cause they were losing their little ones along the way from exposure and disease and starvation. A lot of them just disappeared. So the elders, they said a prayer; asked for a sign to uplift the mothers' spirits, give them strength and hope. The next day this rose started to grow where the mothers' tears fell. I'm not fool enough to think there's any flowers blooming for my brother. But I believe this one bloomed for your little girl." He said. Carol thanked him as she was crying and he walked away. He saw Brooke smiling at him. "What?" he smirked.

"Nothing!" she put up her hands in defense and her eyebrows lifted up. "You big ol' teddy bear." She mumbled. She felt her waist being grabbed and she was pulled to the ground.

"I'm not a softy!" he growled.

"I never said that." She said and he let her go. She lifted herself up. "I said you're a teddy bear." She snickered and she was pushed. "Don't get mad! I just corrected you!" she smiled.

"You're going to pay." He smirked and she kissed him.

"Later." She said but she was pulled by the hand to their tent.

"Now."


	19. Chapter 19: Personal Pit Bull

Hey guys! I just wanted to say I like these reviews…ANOTHA! Haha! Sorry! Thanks so much for the feedback, views, favorites, and follows! I really appreciate it! Thanks and as always, happy reading!

Chapter 19: Personal Pit Bull

The next morning everyone was planning their routes for the search for the day.

"I'm goin' to borrow a horse and go up head up to this ridge right here. Get a bird's eye view of the whole grid. If she's up there I'll spot her." Daryl said.

"Good idea. Maybe you'll see your chupacabra up there, too." T-Dog joked.

"Chupacabra?" Brooke asked.

"You never heard that story?"Dale asked. "The first night at the camp Daryl told us that this whole thing reminds him of the time he went squirrel hunting and saw a chupacabra." Jimmy laughed and Brooke bit her lip but snickered.

"What are you braying at, jackass?" Daryl asked.

"So, you believe in a bloodsucking dog?" Jimmy asked.

"You believe in dead people walkin' around?" Daryl snapped back and Brooke stopped snickering. Jimmy went to grab a gun but Rick stopped him.

"You ever fire one before?" Rick asked.

"Well, if I'm goin' out I want one." Jimmy replied.

"Yeah, and people in hell want slurpees." Daryl grumbled.

"Alright boys!" Brooke called to order. "We need to get down to business. We don't have all day." Brooke grabbed her bow and quiver. Shane gave her a pointed look and so did everyone else around the map. "What?" she asked.

"Brooke, you ain't goin'." Shane told her. "Not today."

"Why?" Brooke asked shifting her weight. Daryl pursed his lips and she knew he told them about her nightmare. "Guys, I'm fine."

"Just one day off. That's all we're askin'." Rick pleaded. Brooke sighed and put back her bow and quiver.

"I'm going back out after today though." She said. She went to her tent and got Daryl's crossbow. She turned and he wasn't that far behind her. He took it from her.

"I thought I said no touchin' my crossbow." He said but he was joking.

"I swear that thing is your baby." She rolled her eyes and gave him a kiss. He hugged her after. "You be careful out there. I don't want a chupacabra stealing you." She smirked and Daryl huffed. "I love you."

"I love you too." He said and gave her another kiss. He got on a horse and went into the woods. Brooke went towards the house to see if she could help out. Lori had been pale all day so Brooke went to investigate. She saw Glenn and Lori in what looked like a sticky situation.

"You're pregnant?" Glenn asked. Brooke went pale.

_"Oh God! It's Shane's, now that woman is having Shane's baby and Rick still doesn't know?" _Brooke thought.

"Please don't say anything." Lori begged Glenn. Glenn agreed and walked away. He turned to see Brooke behind them. Glenn scratched the back of his neck and walked away. "Brooke."

"You still haven't told Rick about you and Shane yet?" she asked and Lori nodded. "Come with me Lori. We're going to have a little talk." Lori's jaw clenched and they walked away from the farm. "Alright Lori. Like I said before you don't mess with my boys. Now that you're pregnant and the baby maybe Shane's, you have to tell Rick. You also need to talk to Shane about this because he is so upset because of you. He loves you and I tried to explain to him that you love him just not in that way."

"You think you can just get in my business like this?" Lori asked.

"You think you can just lead my brother on and get away with it?" Brooke argued back. "You're not just hurting Shane, you're hurting Rick, and Carl. I'm tired of your bullshit and you thinking that everything will resolve itself if you try and push Shane out of your life but it's not. You made my brother threaten to leave me. Because of you I had to beg, _my own brother_, to not leave me in the apocalypse. You have caused so much hell, Lori. You need to fix it and fix it now." Lori stayed quiet.

"You know, you haven't made my life a walk in the park either!" Lori said.

"I've done nothing to you Lori!" Brooke said.

"What about when Rick kissed you a couple years back?" Lori asked and Brooke's eyes got wide. "He told me about it."

"It was when y'all thought of getting a divorce. It was a heat of the moment thing but I stopped it!" she said.

"What?"

"Yeah,_ I_ stopped it because I knew he still loved you! I knew that I could never have him because he loved you and I knew you still loved him! That's what I told him!" Brooke said. "I don't even know if you love Rick anymore!"

"I love Rick!" Lori started crying at this point but Brooke didn't care. She was in battle mode.

"Oh, so that's why you slept with his best friend?" she asked sarcastically. "That's why you couldn't close your legs for five seconds after you thought Rick was dead?" She said chillingly and Lori started to cry even more. "I told you not to mess with my boys. You've hurt them both even if they don't know it. I told Shane when I asked him not to leave to come to me if you gave him anymore bull shit. I told him I would deal with you. You're making my brother do the worst things a person could probably do." Brooke got quiet and realized she had said way too much.

"What are you talking about? What has he done?" Lori sobbed.

"Nothing!" Brooke said and left a sobbing Lori alone. Brooke soon realized after the high school trip that Shane didn't kill Otis to save Carl. He killed Otis to be with Lori. Brooke knew Shane and knew Shane very well. He knew that if he saved Carl then Lori may fall in love with him. He did it for himself and not Carl which made Brooke furious. When Brooke was in the house and Herschel had just told Rick to control his own people. She had always regretted the kiss. When she was younger she had a little crush on him but that was it. She rolled her eyes and asked Herschel if there was anything she could do. Of course, there was nothing. "Come on Rudy!" she called and he trotted with Carl over to her and they began to play.

Meanwhile in the woods Daryl was lying on the ground unconscious. He felt a shake in his body and opened his eyes.

"Merle?" he asked groggily.

"Well hey there little brother! This is what you call survivin'? Come on Darylina you can do better than that." Merle asked. "You're gonna die out here and for what?"

"That little girl's lost." Daryl replied.

"Oh, so you have a thing for little girls now?" Merle mocked.

"Shut up!" Daryl ordered.

"Watch it Darylina. One of these days they gonna' scrape you off their heels like you was dog shit. They ain't your kin. Ain't nobody gonna care about you except me." Merle said.

"Brooke." Daryl said. "She cares about me more than you."

"What happens when she's really dead little brother?" Merle laughed. "Who's gonna care about you then?"

"We ain't leavin' each other. We promised." Daryl said.

"Whatever little brother." Merle said and he was gone. Daryl could hear snapping and snarling coming from his bottom half. Daryl saw the walker and grabbed a branch. He quickly stabbed it but saw another walker coming. In a moment of desperation, he pulled the arrow from his side and hooked it up to his crossbow. In just the nick of time he shot the walker in the head. Daryl winced as he got up. He took the arrow from its head and put it back. Something went off in Daryl and he got serious. He shot a squirrel and ate it raw. Then he made a necklace of walker ears as a trophy. He started to climb up the steep ridge and saw Merle once again. "I'm as real as your chupacabra!" he yelled. Daryl grunted and pulled himself up more. He had made it halfway up the ridge and was completely worn out. "What's the matter Darylina? That all you got in you?" Daryl grunted in anger and frustration and made it to the top of the ridge. "Come on, come on little brother!" Merle laughed and held out a hand. Daryl grabbed on to the ground and pulled himself up. Merle was nowhere to be found.

"Yeah you better run!" Daryl yelled and continued to go back to the camp. He had made it back but heard Andrea call him a walker. Shane, Rick, Glenn, and T-Dog rushed to him but kept their distance.

"Is that Daryl?" Glenn asked. Rick had his gun pointed at him and Shane had a pick axe.

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing at my head!" Daryl told Rick. "You gonna pull the trigger or what?" A gunshot rung throughout the farm and even Brooke and Herschel heard it from inside the house. Daryl felt a sharp pain in his head and fell backwards.

"No!" Rick yelled. He and Shane lifted Daryl up.

"I was just kidding!" Daryl groaned. Herschel and Brooke stood on the front porch and saw blood running down Daryl's head and a wound in his side.

"Daryl!" Brooke cried. Herschel and Brooke led them towards the same room they had kept Carl in. "Alright! Shane I need you to get some of those medi-kits that are in my tent!" Shane nodded and left the room. Herschel got the material ready that they needed for surgery for his wound on his side.

"What about the shot? Did it go through his head?" Herschel asked.

"Thankfully no just grazed it." She sighed. "We need to put some bandages around his head." She went to go take the ear necklace and her nose scrunched up a little. She quickly gave it to Glenn and ordered for him to leave. Shane came back with the medi-kits and she tooke them. She wrapped his head very quickly after disinfecting the wound.

"Brooke." Daryl groaned.

"Sh, it's okay. You'll be fine." She cooed. "We just gotta do this real quick." She said and he felt something go in his arm. He was out within minutes. Brooke took off his shirt and saw the wound impaled the front and the back.

"No vital organs." Herschel said. "We just gotta patch him up a little bit."

"Nothing I'm not used to." Brooke said and they went to work. They were done within a couple of hours. Herschel stuck out his hand. "Doctor." He smiled.

"Doctor." She smiled and shook his hand. They walked downstairs to find everyone waiting. "He'll be fine." Brooke said. "He'll have to recover for a little while though." Herschel went over to his kids and Brooke went over to her group.

"I feel so awful." Andrea hung her head in shame. "I'm so sorry."

"I'm pissed at you but I forgive you. It's not like you killed him." Brooke smiled. "I mean even I've wanted to shoot Daryl at one time one time or another. I'm sure all of us had." Andrea looked up at her and Dale gave her a look. "What?"

"I said almost the exact same thing earlier." Dale said and Brooke laughed.

"Great minds think alike I suppose." She smiled. She saw Lori staring at her and Brooke pursed her lips. She walked over to Lori with an ashamed look. "I'm so sorry for what I said earlier Lori." She said. "It wasn't my place to-"

"No Brooke. I know I need to tell them." Lori nodded. "I also should've known not to mess with Little Walsh the pit bull." Lori smirked and Brooke chuckled.

"Let's just start over." Brooke said.

"I would like that." Lori said. "Would you like to help me and Carol cook dinner."

"I would love to." Brooke smiled. They cooked dinner for everyone and Carol took some up to Daryl. It was a nice little dinner and everyone got to know each other a little better. Brooke walked upstairs to see Daryl who had been cleaned of all the dirt and blood. "Hey there." She said.

"I just got shot and that's what you say to me?" he asked jokingly.

"Hey I just patched up your ass." She smiled. "So how do you feel?"

"I feel okay. Just sore that's all." He winced and try to turn to her.

"Uh-uh don't move!" she warned and she sat on the bed next to him so he didn't have to turn. "You're gonna be resting for a little bit so no hunting." She said. She leaned in and gave him a kiss but realized something . "Did you wash your arrows?" she asked.

"What?"

"Did you wash the arrow that impaled you?" she asked.

"Darlin', you know I always do." He reassured and she sighed.

"So, um, what's up with the necklace?" she asked. "jewelry for me?"

"No I guess I just made it a trophy or somethin'?" he said and smirked. "I ate raw squirrel too." Brooke went pale and grabbed a napkin. She furiously wiped her mouth.

"Ew! And you let me kiss you with all that squirrel on your mouth?" she asked still rubbing her lips. He laughed but it hurt to laugh. "I was so worried when I saw you like that." She sighed and he threw an arm around her waist and pulled her in. She put a hand on his head and played with some of his hair.

"Well, I'm okay now." He smiled.

"Yeah, you just got shot and you took an arrow to the torso." She said. "we're movin' you to the tent tomorrow by the way. I'm pretty sure Herschel wants his house back."

"Alright but don't think it'll be easy. I'm in a bed for the first time in a while." He warned. Brooke got up to go help with the dishes. He pulled her back down and gave her a kiss. She left the room and he thought about what Merle said. Was Merle some sort of sign telling Daryl about what may happen? Was Brooke's life in danger? "Brooke!" he called and she ran back upstairs.

"What? Is everything okay?" She said. "Did you pop the stitches?"

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Um, yeah." She answered warily.

"Are you sure? Is anyone giving you trouble." He asked. Brooke came back over to him and gave him a sweet, long kiss on the lips.

"Daryl, I'm fine." She said and he sighed. He motioned for her to go. As she was leaving the room she looked back at him but continued on. He knew she wasn't lying but something just wasn't right to him. It's like he knew something was going on but he had no clue of what it was. It was bothering him more than his wounds and wondered if she really was okay.


	20. Chapter 20: The First Date

Hey guys! Sorry for not posting! I was at a sleepover with my best friends so I couldn't write! Anyways, thanks for the views, follows, favorites, and reviews! Remember I love hearing from you guys! Also, I finished my Wattpad story so I'll be able to post more but, DUN DUN DUN! My air conditioning in my room went out so I officially have no privacy so I may not be able to type as much as I want. This whole fan fiction thing is my dirty little secret that no one in my family knows about because if they knew, I know I would get made fun of till the day I die. I'm still going to type it just might be a little hard with my family breathing down my neck. Thanks and as always, happy reading!

Chapter 20: The First Date

It was the next morning and they had just moved Daryl into their tent after some resistance. It wasn't that long for Brooke to figure out he was already going stir crazy. Brooke left to go find Shane and Andrea walked into their tent with a book. She was still beating herself up for shooting Daryl even though Brooke reassured her it was okay. She saw Shane by the, as she called it, the soccer mom car.

"Hey Shane!" Brooke greeted.

"Hey baby girl! How's Daryl?" he asked.

"He's fine just being ornery." She replied. "Why are you packing all those guns?"

"I'm taking Andrea out shooting today. She's pretty good but she had a scope and only grazed Daryl's head. She needs better aim." He smirked.

"So you're training her to be your assassin?" Brooke joked.

"I didn't mean it that way!" he defended.

"Relax, I know what you mean!" she giggled and saw Andrea coming from behind. She gave Shane a hug. "You be careful out there. You too Andrea." Andrea nodded and they continued packing. Brooke walked back to her tent and saw Lori giving Glenn yet another firm talking to. She pursed her lips and saw Carl coming towards her. "Hey handsome!"

"Aunt Brook, Shane, can you teach me how to shoot?" he asked and Shane came up behind her.

"Um, I don't know." She said.

"You know what we'll ask your mom and dad if we can." Shane said. Carl nodded and walked away. Brooke saw Shane's face and was concerned.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Look in his belt." He muttered. Brooke saw a loaded handgun.

"How the hell did he get that?" she gasped. "We have to tell Lori and Rick." Shane nodded and they walked over to Lori who was talking to Dale.

"Lori, Carl just asked us if we could teach him how to shoot. When he walked away I saw one of the handguns in his belt." Shane said. Lori's jaw clenched and she looked down at the ground.

"Where the hell did he get a gun?" she asked.

"The other day he asked to go get in the RV so he could get a walkie-talkie. He may have grabbed it while he was inside." Dale confessed.

"So on top of all this shit, he lied." Brooke concluded. "Carl!" she called and Carl came running back. She looked at Lori and Rick came running. Shane filled him in on what happened.

"Why did you steal this gun?" Rick asked taking the gun away from Carl. Carl hung his head in shame.

"I wanted to help out." He said. "I wanted to help find Sophia and protect the camp."

"He wants to learn how to shoot." Shane said.

"We can teach him." Brooke offered.

"I can't do all that stuff without a gun." Carl muttered. Brooke could tell Lori thought the idea was unacceptable but Rick nodded. Lori thought for a little longer and nodded.

"I'll give him a lesson today while you go out with Andrea." Brooke told Shane. Shane nodded and he and Andrea left. "Alright handsome, let me go get my gun." She said and ruffled his hair. She walked over and she began to hear snipping noises coming from the tent. She got closer and saw an arrow head going through the net. "Daryl!"

"What? I'm bored." He defended.

"So read that book! I have two others in my bag just don't destroy our home!" she said and grabbed her gun.

"What're you doin'?" he asked.

"I'm going to teach Carl how to shoot." She said. "I'll be back pretty soon." She said and gave him a kiss. "Love you and don't ruin our house!"

"No promises and love you too!" he called and smacked her butt out of the tent. She squeaked and walked on. She heard Daryl snicker and the snipping began again.

"UGH!" she huffed and walked back. She made sure the other arrows were out of his reach. She reached over and gripped the other arrow. "Give me the arrow!"

"You gonna make me?" he mocked and smirked. Brooke did the opposite of what he wanted and twisted his arm. Not enough to be hurting him but just enough to make him wince. His grip loosened on the arrow and she took it.

"Yep, I'll be back soon." She grinned triumphantly and kissed his cheek. She walked away to get Carl and they went into the woods. No matter how bored Daryl was he didn't want to bring that boring book that Andrea brought him. He laid there for a little bit and thought about Brooke. Their first date was his most successful date he'd ever had. In fact, all of their dates were the best they had both ever been on.

_It was early in the morning after Meemaw's funeral and the light was shining through the windows. Daryl woke up due to the amount of light. It didn't help that he was facing the window. He looked down and saw Brooke huddled against his chest. He was holding her by her back and one of her arms were around his waist and her other hand was holding his shoulder. He kissed her forehead and her eyes fluttered open. She looked up and stretched a little._

_ "Morning." She greeted warmly and propped up on her elbow. He did the same._

_ "Morning, darlin'." He replied and she smiled. She leaned over and kissed him firmly. "How'd you sleep?"_

_ "Very good, you?" she asked._

_ "Good." He said. It was silent after that. Not for very long but neither of them knew what to say. "So, uh, what are you doin' tonight?" he asked._

_ "Well, today I'm meeting the girls to go shopping but we usually end around four. After that, I have nothing." She said._

_ "Well how about we go out tonight?" he smiled and rubbed her arms. "Just you and me."_

_ "Daryl Dixon, are you asking me out on a date?" she asked and he blushed._

_ "Yeah, I finally am."_

_ "That sounds lovely." She said. "What are we going to do?"_

_ "It's a surprise." He said._

_ "You have no idea do you?" she asked._

_ "I'll think of somethin'." He said and she laughed. "You'll like it though, I promise." He put his hand behind her head and pulled her in for another kiss._

_ "Okay, I'm gonna go fix us some coffee." She said and got up. He admired her curves as she stood up and she looked behind her and caught him looking. She wasn't fat and she wasn't skinny. She had the perfect amount of meat on her bones. "Like what you see, Dixon?" she giggled and put on her hot pink, short, cotton robe. She walked into the kitchen and fixed their coffee. They drank their coffee and said goodbye. He had to figure out where they were going for their first date. He walked into his house and finally thought of something brilliant._

_ "Hey baby brother!" Merle greeted but just looked at him. "You look even more stupid than usual. What's goin' on?"_

_ "Nothin' Merle." He said and put his keys on the table. _

_ "So, did you do her right?" Merle asked and Daryl rolled his eyes. "Come on baby brother, you've been wantin' to get in her pants since you were 19."_

_ "Merle shut up!" Daryl huffed and he continued to plan their first date. He drove to her new little house that she rented and went up to the door. He wore a light blue button up shirt with the sleeves, of course, rolled up, jeans, and some hunting boots. She opened the door and she was wearing a dark purple dress that came just above the knee and black flats. He handed her the Daisies he had bought and they got into the truck. She was blindfolded and walked into a store. He took off the blindfold and she laughed._

_ "You took me to the café!" she smiled. He had arranged it so that they were the only ones in the store. There were no tables set up though. She gave him a confused look and he led her outside. There was a single table in the middle of the patio. The twinkle lights were set up and he pulled out a chair for her. She sat down and in front of them were red velvet slices and peppermint tea._

_ "So how did I do?" he asked._

_ "It's wonderful!" she said. They sat down and talked, joked, and had the perfect date. They were both so afraid that it would be awkward but everything just came together perfectly._

Daryl snapped out of his memory and reached for the book. He saw the arrows but they were just out of his reach. He would find a way somehow.

In the woods

"Alright, now aim and once you think you can shoot the bulls eye, pull the trigger." Brooke instructed. Carl took a deep breath and fired the gun but he missed the bulls eye. He groaned in frustration. "It's alright, handsome." She cooed. "It took me a long time before I could hit the center."

"Don't call me handsome." He grumbled.

"Why?" she asked in shock. "It's never bothered you before."

"Well it does now!" he snapped back. "I'm not a little kid anymore!"

"Wait, Carl! Is this what this is about?" she asked and Carl looked down at the ground. "Come here." She said and sat down in the grass. He followed her instructions. "Carl, honey, just because you're in this new situation it doesn't mean that you have to grow up. You're still a kid no matter what you say."

"But I need to grow up, Aunt Brooke." He said.

"Listen to me, you don't need to. You may have to learn to shoot a gun but that doesn't mean you have to grow up now. Trust me; you do not want to grow up too soon. I had to for a person that was close to me and I want my childhood back so badly. I had to become an adult too fast and I regret that so much. Promise me that you'll enjoy being a kid as long as you can." She said.

"I promise." He said and kissed her cheek. She fixed his hat.

"Alright, let's head back handsome." She replied. "Oh, and like my father said to me when I had my first lesson, _this is not a toy it is a weapon._" She quoted and he nodded. When they were back at the camp, Maggie was super upset with Lori and threw a box at her.

"Go get your own damn medicine next time and stop putting Glenn's life in danger!" Maggie said and stormed off. Lori stayed quiet and Brooke motioned for Carl to go play with Rudy. Rudy was just done herding the livestock. She heard car doors slam and she looked over to see Shane and Andrea getting out of the soccer mom car. Shane had a stupid look on his face and the same went for Andrea. Brooke knew that look because he gave it to most of his "girlfriends". Brooke had a look of disgust and saw Dale's look of suspicion. He walked towards Brooke and pulled her aside.

"Is Shane okay?" Dale asked and Brooke chuckled.

"Um, yeah especially now." She joked.

"Not about that. I'm afraid that he's done something wrong." He said and Brooke's jaw clenched.

"Dale, what do you mean?" she asked.

"I think he may have killed Otis." Dale said. "Before you get mad, it's just the details are very vague and nothing seems to fit together."

"Listen, my brother…" she thought for a moment. "My brother is a very sweet guy but he has a temper." She warned. "Please, just stay out of this."

"So he did kill Otis?" Dale asked.

"I never said that, just please stay out of it. For your own good." Brooke pleaded. Dale nodded but Brooke knew he wouldn't stay out of it. He walked away but he walked towards Shane. Brooke ran a hand through her hair. She walked back to her tent and Daryl was reading the book that Andrea gave him. She walked in and laid down next to him. She was on the verge of tears because she knew Shane was changing from the brother she once knew.

"Hey, how did it go?" he asked and she saw that he was actually intrigued in the book.

"How did what go?" she asked. "Oh, the lesson! I had a talk with Carl. He felt like he needed to grow up but I think the talk smoothed him over." Daryl nodded and put down the book. He turned a little and kissed her cheek. She sighed and held him.

"What's goin' on?" he asked. "I can tell somethin's wrong."

"It's nothing just…" she thought about something to cover up what was really wrong. "Shane and Andrea did it in the soccer mom car." Daryl burst out laughing but had to hold his side.

"Oh shit! Really?" he howled and that got Brooke laughing.

"Yeah, he had that look on his face." She replied. She felt a lump under him and pulled out an arrow. She gave him a pointed look and he grinned. "You've got to be kidding me!"

"No matter how much you twist my arm, I will have my way." He grinned.

"I guess I'll have to change that." She said and rolled on top of him. A little while later after their time together she cleaned herself up and walked out to get him some dinner that Dale had made. "Hey Dale!" she smiled and Dale nodded his head. "What's up?" she asked concerned.

"Brooke please be careful." He said quietly.

"What?"

"Just do it." He said and gave her a plate. "I'll have your plate ready when you come back." Brooke nodded and walked away. She gave Daryl his plate and walked back out.

"Hey Baby Girl!" Shane greeted and gave her a side hug.

"Oh, hey Shane!" she replied.

"So what did Dale tell you?" he asked and Brooke heart raced. Was this what Dale was talking about?

"He just told me my plate would be ready when I came back." She replied.

"Ok, I was just wonderin'." He said and walked on. "Oh and earlier today! Did you tell Dale about Otis?"

"No." she said and it was the truth.

"Good. I wouldn't want anything to happen." He said but his look was pointed back at the tent. He playfully smacked Brooke's arm with a smile and walked away towards the group.

"Oh God…" she said to herself. She knew that she wouldn't be able to keep this secret much longer. Someone would find out and Shane would blame her then he would hurt Daryl. "What happened to him?" she asked herself but her eyes got wide. "Lori." She walked to eat dinner and Rudy walked over. He put his head on her lap and whined. He always could tell when Brooke was upset. She smiled and patted his head. She walked back to her tent and so did everyone else. Daryl was already asleep and she kissed his forehead. She felt tears coming to her eyes and she laid down. She turned her body so that she was facing away from him. If he was going to be safe, she needed to stay quiet.


	21. Chapter 21: Come on Brooke

Chapter 21: Come on Brooke

It was the next morning and Brook went to sleep pretty late the last night. It was late in the morning and she had missed breakfast. She couldn't believe that Shane was actually threatening her. He was the one who promised he would protect her. Her cheeks were sticky with tears and the skins under her eyes were puffy. She wanted the Shane she knew back in her life. She didn't want this jealous monster. She wanted the Shane that was over protective of her back, the one that always looked after her, and the one that would never betray Rick. She got up and got ready for the day. She wore an emerald green, button-up, shirt, with skinny jeans, and her dark brown combat boots. She pulled her hair half-back into a bun. She sighed and exited the tent. She rubbed her hands down her face and pulled herself together. She saw Daryl and the rest of the group sitting around eating lunch.

"Morning sleepin' beauty!" Rick greeted unaware of what had happened. She grumbled a good morning and grabbed a plate. She saw Glenn coming from the house and he was shaking. Dale nodded and he continued.

"Guys, um, the barn's full of walkers." He announced. Shane leapt up and ran to the barn. His jaw clenched and Brooke knew he was about to snap.

"We have to leave, now!" he said. Brooke, Daryl, Carol, and Brooke all agreed against him.

"We have to find Sophia!" Carol said. "She's still out there!"

"I just found her doll a couple of days ago!" Daryl yelled.

"Yeah man you found a doll!" Shane kind of chuckled. "She probably saw you with that ear necklace and took off runnin'!" Daryl lunged towards Shane. Rick held Shane back and Brooke stepped in front of Daryl.

"Daryl, please calm down." She cooed. He huffed and turned away towards the stables. Rick continued to talk to Shane.

"Are you not going to go after him?" Carol asked.

"No, when Dixon is pissed off you leave him alone for just a little bit." She said but Carol didn't listen. She ran off to the stables after him.

"Listen, you and I both know that girl is dead." Shane said.

"We don't know that!" Brooke said. "She could still be alive, Shane. Besides, she isn't your daughter she's Carols." Shane sighed and ran his hand over his head. He walked away and that left Brooke and Rick alone.

"I need to go talk to Herschel." He said.

"We can't kill them." She said. "Herschel has them locked up for a reason and they've known about it. They maybe family and we can't kill them. If we're going to stay here we have to respect Herschel's decisions."

"I know but Shane is just…I don't even know anymore about him." Rick said and walked into the house. Brooke sighed and walked over to see Daryl grabbing their things.

"Daryl, what are you doing?" She asked. They'd already spaced themselves from the others but he seemed to be moving even further away.

"I don't want to deal with that jack-ass anymore." Daryl grumbled referring to Shane. He expected Brooke to protest but she grabbed some of their things.

"Where are we moving?" she asked and he pointed over to a place with a rotting fire place. She nodded and walked over there. To be honest, Brooke was relieved they were moving away. Maybe that meant dealing with Shane less. They settled in. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked and Daryl stayed silent. It was still too early. Brooke sighed and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You need to rest." She said quietly.

"Come here." He said and pulled her down. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she leaned back into him. "I'm fine." He said and gave her a quick kiss on the neck.

"I was just wondering and Daryl?" she began.

"Mhm."

"We're not going to stop looking for her." She said. "Don't listen to Shane, all of us outnumber his opinion and I personally don't want to deal with that jack-ass either." She could fell Daryl smile against her collar bone.

"Damn, I love you." He sighed and she chuckled.

"I love you too." She said and turned around. She gave him a kiss on the lips and walked out of the tent. She sighed when she saw Shane walking away from Lori. He directed his path towards her with a fire in his eyes.

"Did you know?" he asked roughly.

"Know what?" she asked.

"That Lori is pregnant?" he huffed. She sighed.

"Yes, I knew."

"Why didn't you tell me?" he barked.

"Same reason why I didn't tell anyone what really happened at the high school. It isn't my story to tell." She replied. Shane shifted his weight and gave her a cold glare. "You can look at me all you want but you know it's the truth."

"Don't you think that the baby could be mine?" he asked.

"Yes but I know Lori. She's going to the grave swearing it's Ricks." She said. "Also, we aren't going to stop looking for Sophia, she's still out there."

"Don't you think that she could be-"

"Yes, but I want to find her dead or alive." She snarled. "All of us want to find her alive but I know that she may be dead. Even if she is she deserves a proper burial."

"So, that's it! You're gonna keep on searchin' for a girl that's most likely dead?" he asked.

"Yes and you know why?" she snapped back.

"Why?"

"Because I would do the same for you and I know you would do the same for me." She said and Shane got deadly quiet. He rolled his eyes and walked away into the woods. Brooke sighed and rubbed her temples. She walked out after him and saw Dale pointing a gun a Shane's head.

"This is where you belong, Shane." Dale said.

"How's that Dale?" Shane asked.

"This world. What it is now, this is where you belong. And I may not have what it takes to last for long, but that's okay." Dale lowered his gun and Shane smirked. ""Cause I can at least say when the world goes to shit, I didn't let it take me down with it."

"Fair enough." Shane said and grabbed the weapons. He obviously didn't get the message. As he turned around she hid back up in the tree. He passed and she breathed again. She climbed down from the tree and ran back to the farm. Everyone was outside. Rick and Herschel had two walkers captured and Shane was in front of the barn door where the walkers were staying. Shane had a gun and he had completely snapped.

"These things ain't sick! They're not people! They're dead! Ain't nothin' for them 'cause all they do, they kill! These things right here, they're the things that killed Amy. They killed Otis! They're gonna kill all of us!" By this time Rudy wasn't about to pounce on the walkers but on Shane. "Hey Herschel, man, let me ask you somethin'. Can a living, breathing person, could they walk away from this?" He asked and shot the walker in the chest.

"No stop it!" Rick yelled.

"That's three rounds in the chest. Could someone who's alive survive that? Why is it still coming?" Shane shot the walker in the chest again. Brooke ran over and pulled on him.

"Shane! That's enough! You've proven your point! Please stop!" she begged.

"Yeah, you're right baby girl." He said and Brooke sighed in relief. "That is enough." He shot the walker in the head.

"No!" she yelled but Shane pushed her away.

"If you want to survive, you gotta fight for it!" Shane announced and opened the barn doors. People began to shoot the walkers as the Greene family cried in misery. After a long time of gun shots and moans, everything finally stopped. Shane looked at their accomplishment while everyone else stood in complete disgust. They heard a small moan and looked at the barn. A little girl in a rainbow t-shirt and dark green shorts limped out. She had blood on her face and her eyes were glossy. Carol cried and ran but Daryl caught her. Carl wept while both Brooke and Shane paled. Shane looked at the ground and looked back up in shock and remorse.

_"Now they're people?" _she thought. "Sophia." She said quietly. Rick walked up with his gun and looked over at Brooke. She nodded and he shot Sophia in the head. Carol wept even more and Rick went over to Herschel. Brooke looked at Daryl who had a mixed look of sadness and anger. Beth ran to her mother, who tried to bite her. Brooke ran and stabbed her in the head with a scythe. "I'm so sorry." Brooke said. Maggie ran over to Beth and pushed her over to their father.

"Thank you." Maggie said quietly. "For saving Beth and trying to stop him." Brooke nodded and Maggie walked away. Herschel walked to the house, Rick and Shane followed him. Shane wasn't thinking and blamed Herschel for everything. Maggie did what Brooke should've done and slapped him. Shane knew that the only person he could fight was Rick.

"You're so stupid for even believing that girl was alive!" Shane yelled and Rick was taken back. Brooke stepped out in front of Rick.

"The only one that's stupid is you!" Brooke yelled. Just like in those cheesy movies, everyone gasped and looked at the two. "None of us were in danger! It's not like the walkers could open the barn door! You opened it, you disobeyed the man who's taking us in, it was all you!" She followed Shane back to the barn yelling at him with every step. "The only one that made a stupid decision was you!"

"I would not say those things if I were you!" Shane warned.

"If you were me you wouldn't have done that stuff!" she said. "Seriously, why did you do all of that? Was it to prove that you were a man, or was it to prove how much of a bastard you've become?" she asked. Shane roared, grabbed her and slammed her against the barn, head first. She slumped to the ground with the rest of the walkers. She was knocked out cold. Shane gasped in horror of what he'd done and began to run to Brooke. He was tackled by Daryl before he could reach her.

"Daryl!" He grumbled in between punches. "Stop!" Daryl didn't stop and let out an inhumane roar of anger. He pulled out his knife but Rick stopped him. Rick gave him a look, a look of concern for him, and Daryl stopped. Shane groaned in pain. He would definitely have a black eye and he may even have a broken nose. Daryl crawled over to Brooke who laid limp in his arms.

"Come on Brooke." He whispered. Dale and T-Dog went over and picked up Brooke. They laid her in her tent so she could rest. Shane would need some time as well from the beating. She looked so peaceful except for the huge mark on her head. Daryl stayed with her for a very long time. His hand was sore and had red marks on the knuckles. He held her hand and one time, she actually squeezed it back which marked she would come back very soon. Rick and Glenn had left to go find Herschel not too long ago but they had been gone a long time. Lori walked over to Daryl who was working on making arrows while keeping an eye on Brooke.

"Listen, Beth's in some catatonic shock. We need Hershel." Lori said.

"Yeah, so what?" Daryl asked.

"So I need you to run into town real quick and get him, Rick, and Glenn." She replied. "Daryl?"

"Your bitch went window-shopping. You want him? Fetch him yourself. I got better things to do." Daryl said. "I've got to stay with Brooke."

"Why are you being so selfish?" Lori asked.

"Selfish? Listen to me, Olive Oyl. I was out there looking for that little girl every single day. I took an arrow and a bullet in the process. Don't you me about getting my hands dirty! You want those two idiots? Have a nice ride. I'm done looking for people." Daryl huffed. "I have to look after my girl! I'm the only one takin' care of her here! Don't call me selfish!" He yelled and Lori walked away. He was furious at everyone at the camp. "Did you hear that Brooke?" he asked. "Callin' me selfish!" he didn't get an answer so he just sat down next to her. He heard a whimper and she winced.

"Oh, my head." She groaned quietly. She felt arms attacking her and thought it was Shane. She screamed but soon held her head in pain.

"Sh, it's me." Daryl cooed and kissed her forehead. She sighed and he kissed her lips. She said she was really tired and just wanted to lie down so he joined her. He fell asleep before her but she stayed awake on purpose.

"If he's willing to hurt me, I know that he will hurt you." She whispered. "I can't put you in danger anymore." She kissed his cheek. "I love you so much, Daryl." She grabbed her things and quietly snuck out. She walked to her car and put her things in the trunk. She walked up to the car door but she was grabbed by the shoulders and turned around.

"What the hell are you doin'?" Daryl asked.

"I have to leave Daryl." She sighed on the verge of tears.

"Why, because of Shane?" he asked and she started to sob.

"He'll hurt you, Daryl." She cried. "I can't let him hurt you."

"Oh, don't worry about me." He said. "I beat him up so badly that he has to rest for the night. Darlin, did he threaten you?" he asked and she nodded. She spilled everything. "I'll kill him!" he tried not to yell.

"No don't!" she said. "I'll deal with him just please don't get into this!" she cried. Daryl sighed and nodded.

"I love you so much, Brooke." He said.

"I love you too, that's why I tried to leave." She wept. He kissed her tenderly and all of her worries melted away. She needed Daryl and he needed her.


	22. Chapter 22: Their King County Past

Hey guys! So this is it! The end of Their King County Past! I'm so glad I wrote it and who knows? When season three comes along I may just write a sequel (Wink Wink). It's so weird that this is ending! I've put so much time into it and I loved writing it! Thank you for all the views, favorites, follows, and reviews! I love hearing from you guys so don't be shy to leave a review. Thank you and as always, Happy Reading!

Chapter 22: Their King County Past

It was earlier the next morning, before the sun was up in fact. Brooke was in Daryl's arms but she knew he was upset about the other day. She held him closer and he sighed.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I failed Brooke." He said.

"Who did you fail?" she asked.

"Everyone." He replied. "I looked for her everyday and we found her in the barn. If I had looked a little longer I may have found her in time."

"You didn't fail anyone. You made everyone proud and grateful that you're here." She said and put her face above his so he would look at her. "You made me proud and I know you made Sophia proud. She's really lucky to have someone like you who cares about her so much." Daryl sighed and Brooke kissed him. "You're a great man. Don't ever forget that." The next couple of days went by as usual. Glenn, Rick, and Herschel came back and took care of Beth. Daryl made sure that Shane wasn't anywhere near Brooke but Shane was able to get her alone.

"Brooke, I'm so sorry!" she could see tears in his eyes. "I never meant to lose my temper, especially like that."

"I forgive you but you can't imagine how angry I am with you." She said.

"I know that you're pissed at me, but I need your advice." He said and Brooke nodded. "Do you think Lori loves me?"

"Shane, honestly, no." she began.

"What if-"

"There is no what if! There's nothing you can do about it. She loves Rick and Rick loves her. Rick has always been like a brother to me." Except for that one time. "I will protect him just like I protect you. I'll make sure that you don't do anything to hurt Rick." Brooke warned and walked away. She heard Shane growl and walk away. Shane was way more distant after that. He didn't even bother talking to Brooke. Almost a full week after that Dale and Shane decided to talk over their differences. Brooke was with almost everyone outside when they saw Shane storming to the camp. He had a bloody nose and he had pure hatred in him.

"Dale attacked me!" Shane said. Brooke stood up and ran to him. He was still her brother and she still loved him no matter what he did.

"Why?" she asked.

"I was beginning to talk and he hit me in the face with the butt of his gun! He took off runnin' in the woods!" he explained. Daryl grabbed his crossbow, Glenn grabbed his Hatchet, Brooke grabbed her bow and arrow, and Rick grabbed a knife. Daryl and Glenn went into the woods while Shane led the other two into a field. There was nothing in the field and Brooke got a sinking feeling in her stomach. She saw Shane pull out his gun.

"So this is where it ends?" Rick asked.

"I'll just say that Dale snapped and killed both of you." Shane replied. "Don't worry Rick, Lori and Carl have gotten over you before. They can do it again." He looked at Brooke. "Daryl will just off himself and save me a bullet." Brooke looked at Shane in disbelief.

"Why?" Brooke asked.

"You two are the only things standin' in my way to have Lori." He said. "When you two are gone, I'll have them free and clear."

"Shane, I know you won't do this. Killing me in cold blood." Rick said.

"He will, he killed Otis." Brooke said trying to bring the attention off of Rick so he could escape. Shane raised his gun at Rick. Brooke lunged and knocked the gun out of his hands. "Rick run!" she yelled and he bolted. Shane looked back up at her and she walked backwards away from him. She saw him reaching in his back pocket and she knew what that meant. "SHANE, IT'S ME! BABY GIRL , LITTLE WALSH!" She yelled.

"That don't matter anymore! All I want is Lori and you're not going to stop me!" Shane pulled out a knife. "You know, your little boyfriend was going to kill me with one of these." She tried to run away but he slapped her to the ground. She tried to get away but he sat on her stomach.

"PLEASE SHANE! PLEASE, I'M YOUR LITTLE SISTER! PLEASE!" she screamed. He positioned his knife with both hands up in the air. She closed her eyes knowing she would die and wept. "I'm about to be killed by my own brother." She mumbled. She suddenly felt a huge amount of weight on top of her body. _"Am I dead?"_ she thought. _"Is this what being dead feels like?"_ She felt her body being dragged from under the weight. She opened her eyes and was staring into Daryl's bright blue ones. She looked over and saw that Shane had an arrow through his heart. She cried harder into Daryl's chest. They heard a moan and they saw that Shane had been turned. Without being bit. A knife was thrown into his head by Rick. The rest of the group was behind him.

"He killed Dale and Dale reanimated without bein' bit." Daryl said.

"Then it's true." Rick said.

"What's true?" Lori asked.

"We're all infected." He said and everything grew silent.

"You didn't think about telling us?" Glenn asked.

"Well I thought it was best if people didn't know." Rick sighed. He was calm but Brooke could see sadness in his eyes. No matter what Shane had done, he was Rick's best friend, and Brooke's brother.

"So when we die, we turn into one of those things?" Andrea asked.

"Yes." People started to freak silently. All except Brooke who walked over to her brothers body. She closed his eye lids and said a quick prayer. She took the 22 off of his gold necklace and added the pendant next to her star and cross.

"Was that what Jenner whispered to you?" Daryl asked and everyone grew silent. All eyes were on Brooke.

"Yes but he told me something I only needed to know." She said. People gave her confused looks and Daryl had a concerned one. She had to come clean, now. "Everyone is infected." She breathed. "Except me." There was another silence.

"Why except you?" T-Dog asked.

"I'm the only one with an O negative blood type." She said. "For some reason, the virus does not affect O negative blood. I can get bit but that doesn't mean I can't die from it. From all the blood loss I could easily die from those things. I just can't turn into one." Everyone looked at her astonished. She could tell some were about to give her a piece of their mind but they would look back at Shane and shake their heads. She thought either they felt sorry for her or they were afraid that she would become the new Shane. She felt her arm being pulled on and away from the group.

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" he asked.

"I knew that the whole we're all infected thing would start a panic through the group. The fact that I'm the only one who's not, I thought that may be too much at one time so I decided to stay quiet. I didn't even know to believe Jenner. He had gone crazy and I didn't know what to believe." She explained. She expected for Daryl to walk away but instead he crashed his lips into hers.

"I'm so glad you can't be one of those things." He said. "I'm sorry about Shane."

"Thank you." She said. "Thank you for protecting me." They kissed again. "I love you so much Daryl."

"I love you too Brooke." He replied. Would it be hard to get through this? Yes. Would they need each other every step of the way? Absolutely. They had each other and that's all that mattered. They had their King County past.


	23. Authors Note

Authors Note

Hey guys! It's LeaDenise here just saying that I may go ahead and write the sequel of Their King County Past early. I have a lot of ideas for what's going to happen to the group and I have, what I think, is a great story line for Brooke. I'm going to send them to Prison (Insert evil laughter) but I have a lot of twists and turns ready for Brooke and Daryl. I don't have that much longer until school starts so I'll set a day for me to post the new chapter on. For now I'm just going to post as much as I can. Thank you for all of the support and as always, happy reading!


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